A comparison between different nitriding

alternatives Gas - Plasma:

Costs, Loading, Cleaning, Process Technology. Future trends in nitriding

technology. Key Parameters for nitriding processes.

8.10.2014, R. Nöbauer
 Profitability of Nitriding Equipment

Nitriding Life Cycle

Technology Acquisition Machine System operation Scrapping

planning and and/or
and dev. installation start up Service, maint. liquidation
parts replacem.

Costs
Scrapping
100%
Running costs

Life
Maintenance costs Cycle
Costs
Installation and
Capital Start up costs
expenditure Planning
costs

Slide 2
 Profitability of Nitriding Equipment

Nitriding Life Cycle

Technology Acquisition Machine System operation Scrapping

planning and and/or
and dev. installation start up Service, maint. liquidation
parts replacem.

Costs
Scrapping
100%
Running costs

Life
Maintenance costs Cycle
Costs
Installation and
Capital Start up costs
expenditure Planning
costs

Slide 3
 Asset Life Cycle

Technology Acquisition Machine System operation Scrapping

planning and and/or
and dev. installation start up Service, maint. liquidation
parts replacem.

Focus on Production Chains

Raw
Machining Hardening Machining Cleaning Nitriding Grinding
Material

Stress
Cleaning Masking
relieving

Fine machine

Decisive for the costs is the total

production chain!
How expensive is heat treatment ?
Slide 4
Example of a ring gear

portion of costs in %
% 20MnCrS5 – 31CrMoV9 - PN
BCH Var. A Var. B
100
savings - 16 17

80 structure honing - 8 -

hard machining 32 - -
60 7 6 6
hardening
soft finishing 54 61 32
40
stress annealing - - 4

20 pre-machining - - 32

material 7 9 9
0
bolt-case plasma nitriding
hardening Var. A Var. B

Slide 5
 Asset Life Cycle

Technology Acquisition Machine System operation Scrapping

planning and and/or
and dev. installation start up Service, maint. liquidation
parts replacem.

Typical input for parts development

Product System

Bending Fatigue Cell or In Line manuf.

Rolling/Sliding Fatigue Work safety

Temp. Resistance, Fatigue Environmental issues

Corrosion Resistance Geometry / Parts per time [hr]

Welded design Logistics – pre/post processes

….. …..

Slide 6
 Asset Life Cycle

Technology Acquisition Machine System operation Scrapping

planning and and/or
and dev. installation start up Service, maint. liquidation
parts replacem.

Geometry / Parts per time [hr] Gas Nitriding loading possibilities

Slide 7
 Asset Life Cycle

Technology Acquisition Machine System operation Scrapping

planning and and/or
and dev. installation start up Service, maint. liquidation
parts replacem.

Geometry / Parts per time [hr] Plasma Nitriding loading possibilities

Plasma density in a slot

of 1 mm – dead end

Slide 8
 Asset Life Cycle

Technology Acquisition Machine System operation Scrapping

planning and and/or
and dev. installation start up Service, maint. liquidation
parts replacem.

Logistics – pre/post processes

Cleaning prior to Nitriding Plasma Gas Trend

Dry operations
Gas – N2 – CO2
cooling and
Contamination Layer > 1 µm cleaning
Dirt, machining residues

Sorption Layer C , O, water mainly

Reaction Layer

Deformed boundary layer > 1 µm

Base material

Slide 9
 Asset Life Cycle

Technology Acquisition Machine System operation Scrapping

planning and and/or
and dev. installation start up Service, maint. liquidation
parts replacem.

Logistic – pre/post processes

CLAMP ONCE
MACHINE COMPLETE

Slide 10
Clamp once – machine complete

Turning, Hobbing, Drilling, In process

measuring, Gear cutting, Chamfering,…

Core tensile strength

2000 N/mm2 and more

RAW material Finished part

No deficient products

Heat
Treatment
Slide 11
 Asset Life Cycle

Technology Acquisition Machine System operation Scrapping

planning and and/or
and dev. installation start up Service, maint. liquidation
parts replacem.

Logistic – pre/post processes

Cost saving potential  optimized production chains

By use of Nitriding Technology

Clamp
Forging
Raw once –
incl. Nitriding
Material Machine
Hardening
complete

Clamp
Raw Masking
once –
Material and Nitriding
Machine
Hardened Loading
complete

Slide 12
 Asset Life Cycle

Technology Acquisition Machine System operation Scrapping

planning and and/or
and dev. installation start up Service, maint. liquidation
parts replacem.

Bending Fatigue, RCF, SCF

Tooth root = Tooth flank =

Bending Fatigue Rolling/Sliding Fatigue

pit marks

micro pitting Slide 13

 Endurance strength values of ISO 6336-5:2003
in N/mm² in dependence of heat-treatment and
steel quality

tooth root endurance strenght Flim tooth flank endurance strength Hlim

600 1800
1600
500
1400
400 1200
1000
300
800
200 600
100
400
200
0 0
Ind. H. GN CH PN RÜ Ind. H. GN CH PN RÜ

Ind. H …. Inductive Hardening, Flame

Hardening
GN …….. Gas Nitriding
CH …….. Case Hardening
PN ……... Thesis Schlötermann (1988)
RÜ ......... Rübig SIR results –
measured at FZG - Munich Slide 14
 Asset Life Cycle

Technology Acquisition Machine System operation Scrapping

planning and and/or
and dev. installation start up Service, maint. liquidation
parts replacem.

Temp. Resistance, Fatigue Thermal Fatigue

Slide 15
Treatment parameters

Slide 16
Thermal Fatigue Crack initiation and growth

Slide 17
Summary of Pellizzari et al.

Slide 18
 Asset Life Cycle

Technology Acquisition Machine System operation Scrapping

planning and and/or
and dev. installation start up Service, maint. liquidation
parts replacem.

Typical input for parts development

Product System

Bending Fatigue Cell or In Line manuf.

Rolling/Sliding Fatigue Work safety

Temp. Resistance, Fatigue Environmental issues

Corrosion Resistance Geometry / Parts per time [hr]

Welded design Logistic – pre/post processes

….. …..

Slide 19
 Fatigue strength,
Further optimization of White Layer
Load and therm. capacity

RCF/SCF strength,
Further optimization of Oxide Layer
Corrosion protection

RCF/SCF and bending

Use compressive stress as a design element
strength

Close to
Deeper integration into production line
“One piece Flow”

Cleaning and coating

Combine Nitriding with pre or post processes
integration

Reduce process times Cost saving

Slide 20
 Fatigue strength,
Further optimization of White Layer
Load and therm. capacity

RCF/SCF strength,
Further optimization of Oxide Layer
Corrosion protection

RCF/SCF and bending

Use compressive stress as a design element
strength

Close to
Deeper integration into production line
“One piece Flow”

Cleaning and coating

Combine Nitriding with pre or post processes
integration

Reduce process times Cost saving

Slide 21
 Quelle: Vergleichende Untersuchung zur
Härteänderung beim Puls Plasmanitrieren, W.
Exner, HTM 40 1985, S166 ff. Slide 22
Quelle: MSE 701 Seminar Department of Materials Science and Engineering, March 22, 2006 McMaster
University
Slide 23