Solidification

Published

May 15, 2026

Author(s)

Dilip Banerjee, William Boettinger

Abstract

Solidification is a well-known subject. Some of the common examples of solidification are the casting of metals in industrial practice, the formation of ice, and the freezing of solder in electrical circuits. Manufacturing of almost every man-made component involves solidification at some stage. Casting of metals is one of most economic and important manufacturing processes. This chapter provides an overview of metal solidification starting with a description of the transport phenomena in solidification. Then, several important topics are covered for a thorough understanding of the solidification process. These topics are: thermodynamics of solidification including an overview of the phase field modeling approach in solidification, nucleation, growth kinetics, solidification of alloys with both planar and near planar interface, and cellular and dendritic solidification (including a description of microsegregation) in metallic systems. Polyphase solidification (e.g., eutectic, monotectic, and peritectic) is described next. Fluid flow in casting solidification is addressed next. Macrosegregation, formation of porosity and inclusions in castings, and fluidity are then discussed. Finally, Section 7.10 is dedicated to metal additive manufacturing (AM), where the focus is on the laser powder-based fusion (LPBF) process. A brief description of common AM processes and typical machines that are used for AM fabrication are provided. The physics of the metal AM process is discussed next. This includes a discussion of both continuum level models for describing fluid dynamics, heat transfer, and thermomechanical behavior and mesoscale models (e.g., phase field and cellular automata) for microstructural evolution. Then, a brief summary is provided about common alloys that are processed through the AM route. Finally, mechanical properties of AM-fabricated parts of common alloys are discussed briefly.

Citation

Physical Metallurgy, 6th edition

Publisher Info

Elsevier, Amsterdam,

Pub Type

Book Chapters

Download Paper

https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-443-21710-4.00005-7

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Citation

Banerjee, D. and Boettinger, W. (2026), Solidification, Physical Metallurgy, 6th edition, Elsevier, Amsterdam, , [online], https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-443-21710-4.00005-7, https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=958038 (Accessed May 19, 2026)

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