Ductile Brittle Transition -- is it permanent/reversible?

[DrejzaVu]

I gather that the DBT goes both ways, but I am not sure. Most of the texts that I have read clearly point out that some ductile material become brittle when temperature drops below a certain point. However, if the temperature were to rise again and the metal had no cracking and survived, would it return to a ductile state?

Mark

 

[mcguire]

Yes, it will. The DBT is a measure of the material's ductility, or toughness, as a function of temperature. The temperature of the transition, which is really quite a range, is a useful number to characterize the material in this regard.

 

[metengr]

Yes, you are correct. For metals that exhibit a ductile to brittle transition temperature (DBTT), you can restore ductile fracture behavior by remaining above this transition temperature. Of course, if you fall below this temperature, the material will behave in a brittle manner.

 

[Salvatio]

perhaps the same principles with putting a rubber ball into a freezer, and then take it out again, and it may return to its original state.