Thermal Treatments: Dislocations, Grain Boundaries, and Hardening Mechanisms

This lecture covers the energy stored in metals due to dislocations, the impact of plastic deformation on material energy, the role of grain boundaries in energy distribution, and the mechanisms of thermal treatments for hardening metals through recrystallization, grain growth, and precipitation. It also discusses the mobility of grain boundaries, the growth of grains, and the effects of heat treatments on the structure of precipitates, dislocation density, and hardness. Various hardening mechanisms, such as solid solution hardening and work hardening, are explored in the context of metal alloys.