See chemical vapor deposition, physical vapor deposition and sputtering.

An imprecise term used to denote a treatment given cold-worked material to reduce its strength to a controlled level or to effect stress relief. To be meaningful, the type of material, the degree of cold work, and the time-temperature schedule must be sta ...

Numerous, very fine cracks in a coating or at the surface of a metal part. Checks may appear during processing or during service and are most often associated with thermal treatment or thermal cycling. Also called check marks. checking, or heat checks.

A cell in which chemical change is the source of electrical energy. It usually consists of two dissimilar conductors in contact with each other and with an electrolyte. or of two similar conductors in contact with each other and with dissimilar electrolyt ...

Embrittlement resulting from bombardment with neutrons, usually encountered in metals that have been exposed to a neutron flux in the core of a reactor. In steels, neutron embrittlement is evidenced by a rise in the ductile-to-brittle transition temperatu ...

Loss of carbon from the surface layer of a carbon-containing alloy due to reaction with one or more chemical substances in a medium that contacts the surface. See also dealloying.

A coating process, similar to gas carburizing and carbonitriding, whereby a reactant atmosphere gas is fed into a processing chamber where it decomposes at the surface of the workpiece, liberating one material for either absorption by, or accumulation on ...

An atmosphere in an area of heavy industry with soot, fly ash, and sulfur compounds as the principal constituents.

The selective attack of one or more components of a solid solution alloy; eg. dezincification, dealumination etc. See dealloying.

An instrument for indicating or measuring a small electric current by means of a mechanical motion derived from electromagnetic or electrodynamic forces produced by the current.

A form of deterioration that is distributed more or less uniformly over a surface; See uniform corrosion.

The maximum current density that can be used to obtain a desired electrode reaction without undue interference such as from polarization.

(1) A type of corrosion attack (deterioration) uniformly distributed over metal surface. (2) Corrosion that proceeds at approximately the same rate over a metal surface. Also called general corrosion.

The phenomenon leading to fracture under repeated or fluctuating stresses having a maximum value less than the tensile strength of the material. Fatigue fractures are progressive and grow under the action of the fluctuating stress.

A stress that causes an elastic body to deform (shorten) in the direction of the applied load. Contrast with tensile stress.

Removing the thick layer of oxides formed on some metals at elevated temperatures.

A process of removing soil, scale, or corrosion products from a metal surface by subjecting it as an electrode to an electric current in an electrolytic bath.

Direct current supplied by a device employing a power source external to the electrode system of a cathodic protection installation.

(1) A reaction in which there is an increase in valence resulting from a loss of electrons. Contrast with reduction. (2) A corrosion reaction in which the corroded metal forms an oxide; usually applied to reaction with a gas containing elemental oxygen, s ...

The maximum cyclic stress value that a metal can with stand for a specified number of cycles or length of time in a given corrosive environment. See corrosion fatigue strength