Degradation Processes in Engineering Materials (FSI-EDE)

The course objective is to familiarize students with problems of production and operation degradations in engineering materials on such a level that they should be able to assess the effect of the technologies used as well as of the conditions of exploitation on the properties of the materials of component parts and structures.
The course will provide students with the basic information on production and operation degradation in engineering materials. Students will learn to regard material as a chemically and structurally heterogeneous body, whose states can be greatly affected by exploitation conditions.

Knowledge of mathematics and physics at the level of basic courses taught in technical and science-oriented universities is required. Students should also have fundamental knowledge in materials engineering and related manufacturing technologies (metallurgy, foundry processes, forming, welding). In addition, familiarity with the following experimental methods is expected: metallography, scanning and transmission electron microscopy, and X-ray spectral microanalysis (EDS, WDS).

The course “Degradation Processes in Engineering Materials” is designed to introduce students to the fundamental mechanisms of both manufacturing-related and operational degradation of engineering materials, particularly steels and other metals. The knowledge gained will enable students to more accurately determine end-of-life conditions and utilize materials more efficiently, as well as to competently assess and identify the causes of failure.

Manufacturing degradation includes topics such as metallurgy, material purity, chemical and structural heterogeneity, and the effects of welding as an example of degradation caused by technological processes. This section will be complemented by an overview of defects that occur in castings, wrought products, and welded joints.

Operational degradation covers corrosion, hydrogen embrittlement, wear, radiation embrittlement, and structural stability - focusing on their nature, their impact primarily on mechanical properties, and the methods of testing and evaluation.

The course also includes methodology for analyzing the causes of failures in machine components, supported by practical case studies.

Conditions for awarding the corse-unit credit: Attendance at seminars , demonstrating the basic knowledge of the topics dealt with in the course of exercises when solving model problems. Exam: The knowledge of concepts, definitions and essentials of the topics discussed is tested. The emphasis is laid on testing the ability to apply the knowledge obtained. The exam is oral, in the case of second resit there is also a written part.
Education is controlled via the attendance at seminars; the attendance is recorded by the tutor. If the serious lack of knowledge or absence from exercises is found, the tutor assigns a topic for an individual written report.

1. Fractography of metallic materials (basic mechanisms and selected defective fractures).
2. Effect of metallurgy on the properties of steels.
3. Purity and its effect on the properties of materials.
4. Chemical and related structural heterogeneity.
6. Production and operation degradation in weld joints, stability of the structure.
7. Defects of casings and weldments.
8. Damage due to corrosion.
10. Hydrogen embrittlement.
11. Damage due to radiation.
12. Wear of materials.
13. Analyses of the causes of machine part failures.