TY - JOUR N2 - The investigations were inspired with the problem of cracking of steel castings during the production process. A single mechanism of decohesion – the intergranular one – occurs in the case of hot cracking, while a variety of structural factors is decisive for hot cracking initiation, depending on chemical composition of the cast steel. The low-carbon and low-alloyed steel castings crack due to the presence of the type II sulphides, the cause of cracking of the high-carbon tool cast steels is the net of secondary cementite and/or ledeburite precipitated along the boundaries of solidified grains. Also the brittle phosphor and carbide eutectics precipitated in the final stage solidification are responsible for cracking of castings made of Hadfield steel. The examination of mechanical properties at 1050°C revealed low or very low strength of high-carbon cast steels. L1 - http://www.journals.pan.pl/Content/87557/PDF/18_paper.pdf L2 - http://www.journals.pan.pl/Content/87557 PY - 2013 IS - No 3 DO - 10.2478/afe-2013-0066 KW - Cast Steel KW - Hot cracking KW - solidification KW - segregation A1 - Stradomski, Z. A1 - Stradomski, G. A1 - Stachura, S. PB - The Katowice Branch of the Polish Academy of Sciences DA - 2013 T1 - Fracture Mechanisms in Steel Castings UR - http://www.journals.pan.pl/dlibra/publication/edition/87557 T2 - Archives of Foundry Engineering ER -