Plastic Flow of Iron Oxides And the Oxidation of Iron

Under certain conditions, the oxidation of iron in oxygen at high temperatures is accompanied by the formation of a central box-like cavity the dimensions of which are identical to those of the original iron specimen. The decrease in size of this cavity with increasing temperature and its disappearance when the formation of magnetite and hematite is excluded by a controlled oxidizing potential indicates that the plastic properties of the oxides may be an important factor. This is qualitatively confirmed by the measurement of the relative plasticity of the three oxides at 800-1000 C in a specially designed apparatus. 3.2.3