Introduction to Carbon Equivalent Calculator
The carbon equivalent concept is generally used for iron and steel materials. The different elements like carbon, molybdenum, vanadium, chromium, copper, nickel, manganese, silicon, etc. are present in an alloy. The amount of all alloys present in steel is converted to carbon equivalent because the iron-carbon phase is easy to study and observe. The calculation of carbon equivalent is usually used in the material industry to study the properties of iron. The carbon equivalent calculator is used for quick calculation of CE value.
The Concept of Carbon Equivalent
Different alloyants are added to iron or steel alloys to increase their properties. All these alloy materials affect the hardness, malleability, and ductility of the iron. These alloying materials are added in different amounts. The percentages of these alloying materials are converted to carbon percentage which is called carbon equivalent. It is done because the carbon-iron phase is better observed and understood.
The carbon equivalent value is used to study the properties like malleability, hardness, and critical cooling point of the alloy.
How to use the Carbon Equivalency Calculator?
One can easily calculate the carbon equivalent of an alloy when the amount of all alloyants present is known.
Enter the amount of carbon.
Enter the amounts of Molybdenum (Mo), manganese (Mn), chromium (Cr), vanadium (V), Nickel (Ni), and copper (Cu).
Now press the “Calculate” button and you will get the results.
Scope of Carbon Equivalent
- The concept of CE is used in industrial and material chemistry, especially in ferrous materials.
- Best iron alloys are made using the suitable amounts of alloyants.
- The high value of carbon equivalent indicates the high cooling rate, brittleness, and hardness.
- The value of CE tells the effect of different alloying elements on the properties (hardness, brittleness, etc.) of the alloy.
- Carbon equivalent is also calculated to check if a certain alloy is suitable for welding with the carbon equivalency calculator.
- For example, if you want to weld two materials together then you compare the carbon equivalent values of both materials. This comparison is done with a carbon equivalent calculator to find out if the two materials are suitable to weld together.
- Different values of CE determine the suitability of the alloy for welding purposes. If the value of CE is 0.36 – 0.40 then the alloy is very good for welding. If the value is 0.41-0.45 then it is considered good and if the value of CE is 0.46 – 0.50 then the alloy is fairly suitable for welding.
Carbon Equivalent Formula
The value of CE is calculated if you know the amount of each element present in the alloy. The formula used for the calculation is as follows:
CE = C + Mn / 6 + (Cr + Mo + V) / 5 + (Ni + Cu) / 15
Where C is carbon, Mn is manganese, Cr is chromium, Mo is molybdenum, V is vanadium, Ni is nickel, and Cu is copper.
One can easily calculate the carbon equivalent value of an alloy using the above formula. If you want to avoid the hassle of this calculation, then you may use the CE calculator.
Example:
Calculate the carbon equivalent value of an iron alloy containing 8% carbon, 3% molybdenum, 1% chromium, 1.5% vanadium, 4.6% nickel, 1.2% manganese, and 5% copper.
Step 1: write all the values in a specific order.
C = 8, Mn = 1.2, Cr = 1, Mo = 3, V = 1.5, Ni = 4.6, Cu = 5
Step 2: put all values in the formula:
CE = 2 + 1.2 / 6 + (1 + 3 + 1.5) / 5 + (4.6 + 5) / 15
CE = 2 + 0.2 + 1.1 + 0.64
CE = 3.94
Answer: The value of carbon equivalent is calculated as 3.94.
The CE value determines the properties of a certain alloy. For example, if the value of CE is between 0.40 – 0.60 then preheating is necessary before welding. And if the value of CE is above 0.60 then both preheat and post-heat are necessary.
Conclusion
The carbon equivalent calculator is very useful in calculations of material and industrial chemistry. It is usually calculated for the steel alloys by converting the percentages of all elements to the amount of carbon. This is done because the iron-carbon phase is studied easily. Different iron industries use this value to determine the properties of a certain alloy. Carbon equivalency calculator gives you higher values of carbon equivalent indicate less malleability and high cooling temperature than critical cooling temperature.
