Thermodynamics and phase diagram of the Fe-C system

A critical review of published data provides a fairly accurate knowledge of the thermodynamic properties of all of the phases of the system Fe-C that are stable or metastable at atmospheric pressure. Selected data are shown as tables and equations. A proposed phase diagram differs only slightly from others recently published but has the following features. Peritectic compositions and the α-γ equilibrium are shown to agree with measured values of the activity of iron in the solid and liquid solutions and the thermodynamic properties of pure iron. Of all the reported carbides of iron only two may be studied under equilibrium conditions. The solubilities of cementite and of χ-carbide in α-Fe are deduced from measured equilibria. Both are metastable at all temperatures with respect to graphite and its saturated solution in iron. The χ-carbide becomes more stable than cementite below about 230° Certain published data on ε-carbide permit an estimate of its free energy as a precipitate during the aging process.