Designation:E2567−14StandardTestMethodforDeterminingNodularityAndNoduleCountInDuctileIronUsingImageAnalysis1ThisstandardisissuedunderthefixeddesignationE2567;thenumberimmediatelyfollowingthedesignationindicatestheyearoforiginaladoptionor,inthecaseofrevision,theyearoflastrevision.Anumberinparenthesesindicatestheyearoflastreapproval.Asuperscriptepsilon(´)indicatesaneditorialchangesincethelastrevisionorreapproval.INTRODUCTIONDuctilecastiron,alsoknownasnodularcastiron,andspheruliticorspheroidalgraphiticiron,isproducedwithgraphiteinaspheruliticform.Nodularizingelements,suchasmagnesium,cerium,lithium,sodiumetc.,areaddedtoamoltenmetalbathofproperchemicalcompositiontoproducediscreteparticlesofspheroidal-shapedgraphite.Thecontrolofgraphiteshapeiscriticaltonodularironproperties.Areproduciblemeasurementmethodisrequiredforevaluationofthecastproductandtocontrolprocessvariability.Shapeisadifficultparametertoassessusingstandardchartmethods,unlesstheshapeisveryclosetowell-recognizedgeometricshapes.Noduledensityisalsodifficulttoassessbychartmethodsasnodulesizeisalsoavariableandthechartcannotdepictnoduledensityvariationsfornodulesofallpossiblesizes.Stereologicalandmetrologicalmethodsprovideunbiasedtechniquesforassessingstructuralvariations.Theseproceduresarebestperformedbyimageanalysissystemsthateliminateoperatorsubjectivity,biasandinaccuraciesassociatedwithmanualapplicationofstereologicalandmetrologicalmethods.Themetallographicsectioningplanewillcutthroughthenodulesatrandom,producingimagesofgraphitenoduleswithcircularornear-circularperipherieswitharangeofdiameters.1.Scope1.1Thistestmethodisusedtodeterminethepercentnodularityandthenodulecountperunitarea(thatis,numberofnodulespermm2)usingalightmicroscopicalimageofgraphiteinnodularcastiron.Imagesgeneratedbyotherdevices,suchasascanningelectronmicroscope,arenotspecificallyaddressed,butcanbeutilizedifthesystemiscalibratedinbothxandydirections.1.2Measurementofsecondaryortempercarboninothertypesofcastiron,forexample,malleablecastironor...
