Metallurgically

Metallurgically is an adverb derived from metallurgy, the science and technology of metals. It describes actions performed by or in relation to metallurgical methods. In technical writing it is used to indicate that a process, property, or analysis is achieved or assessed through metallurgical means, as distinct from purely chemical, mechanical, or physical approaches.

Metallurgy encompasses extractive metallurgy, which deals with obtaining metals from ores, and physical metallurgy, which covers alloy development, heat treatment, deformation processing, and microstructure analysis. A metallurgically processed material may involve refining, alloying, tempering, quenching, or grain refinement. The term can appear in sentences such as the alloy was metallurgically tempered or metallurgically derived properties.

Usage notes: It is most common in scholarly articles, patents, and industry reports. It may imply that results are achieved under controlled metallurgical conditions and verified by metallurgical techniques, rather than by non-metallurgical methods.

Etymology: The word combines metallurgy with the adverbial suffix -ly; metallurgy itself derives from Latin metallurgia and Greek roots relating to metalworking.