This test method is established to cover automated SEM/EDX-based procedures for:

Rating the inclusion content of steels based on procedures listed in Standards E 45 and E 1245, with the significant difference that the composition of the individual inclusions, as determined by X-ray analysis, is utilized to sort them into chemical classes.

Determining the number, size and morphological distribution of inclusions in steels sorted by chemical class.

Methods 1 and 2 of this test method are primarily intended for rating the inclusion content of steels deoxidized with silicon or aluminum, both silicon and aluminum, or vacuum-treated steels without either silicon or aluminum additions. Guidelines are provided to rate inclusions in steel treated with rare earth additions or calcium-bearing compounds (13.4). When such steels are evaluated, the test report should describe the nature of the inclusions rated according to each inclusion category (A, B, C, D).

Methods 1 and 2 will provide a quantitative rating of the inclusion content in half-severity number increments from 0 to 5 for each inclusion type and thickness (Method D of Test Method E 45), and in tabulated in Table 2. Test Method E 45 ratings by SEM may differ from those determined following E 45 because of the use of chemistry in the classifications. In order to differentiate E 45 ratings obtained using the SEM from traditional ratings using light microscopy, the ratings obtained using Method 1 or 2 of this Test Method shall be identified as E 45-SEM1 and E 45-SEM2, respectively.

Method 3 defines procedures to analyze and report inclusions by arbitrary size distribution and chemical classifications. It may be made applicable to any material by appropriate choice of these classifications.

Method 3 determines and reports basic (as used in Test Method E 1245) stereological measurements (for example, volume fraction of sulfides and oxides, the number of sulfides or oxides per square millimeter, and so forth). This test method, however, does not address the measurement of such parameters. E 45 ratings are not produced in Method 3 because the inclusion classifications do not follow those defined in Test Method E 45.

The quantitative results are intended to provide a description of the types and amounts of inclusions in a heat of steel. This test method contains no guidelines for such use.

TABLE 2 Minimum Values for Inclusion Severity Rating Levels for Measurements in Micrometers (For expression in other units, see Test Methods E 45, Table 2)