Jeferson Sabio | BSCE 3A

Engineering Utilities II | CE 314

 Heat treatment is the heating and
cooling of metals to change their physical
and mechanical properties, without letting
it change its shape.

In simple terms, it is the process of

heating the metal, holding it at that
temperature, and then cooling it back.
During the process, the metal part will
undergo changes in its mechanical
properties. This is because the high
temperature alters the microstructure of
the metal. And microstructure plays an
important role in the properties of a
material.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

 The process of heat treatment involves the use of heating or
cooling, usually to extreme temperatures to achieve the
desired result. It is a very important manufacturing processes
that can not only help the manufacturing process but can also
improve product, its performance, and its characteristics in
many ways.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

The properties of heat-treated materials vastly depend on the processes that it has
to undergo. Below are those key principles of heat treatment.

1 2 3

Heating Holding Cooling

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

 The first step in the heat
treatment process is heating the
metal. The temperature depends on
1
the types of metal and the technique
used.

Uniform temperature is of
primary importance in the heating
cycle. If one section of a part is
heated more rapidly than another,
Heating the resulting uneven expansion often
causes distortion or cracking of the
part.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

 The object of heat-treating is to bring
about changes in the properties of metal. To
accomplish this, the metal must be heated to the
temperature at which structural changes take
2
place within the metal.

During the holding process, the metal is

kept at the achieved temperature for some
period of time. The time required depends on the
type of metals and also the type of mechanical
Holding properties that are expected. The holding time
also depends on the part size. If the part is large
it is kept in a holding state for more time than
the same type of metals having a small part size.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

 After being heated to the
proper temperature, the metal must be
returned to room temperature to
3 complete the heat-treating process.
The metal is cooled by placing it in
direct contact with a gas, liquid, or
solid, or some combination of these.

The cooling must be done in a

prescribed manner such as quenching
Cooling
where the metal is rapidly cooled.
Different media such as water, oil, or
forced air is used to aid in cooling.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

The various heat-treating processes are similar in that they involve the heating
and cooling of metals. They differ, however, in the temperatures to which the
metals are heated, the rates at which they are cooled, and in the final result.

Here are some of the commonly practiced heat treatment techniques in industries:

Annealing Normalizing Hardening Tempering

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

 Annealing

Annealing is a heat treatment process

which is used to soften the metal. This
process makes the steel soft so that it can
be easily machined.

There are two types of annealing process:

Process Annealing
Full Annealing

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

 Annealing

Process Annealing
It is done when metal is heated below the critical temperature, keep it for a
suitable time, and then cool it slowly. This process is suitable for low carbon
steel like sheet metal and wires. No phase transformation occurs during
process annealing and it’s considerably cheaper than full annealing

Full Annealing
It is done when metal is heated above the critical temperature. This
process is suitable for low and high carbon steel. Phase transformation
occurs during the full annealing process and it is a costly operation than
process annealing.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

Annealing

It softens steel and to improve its machinability

To refine grain size and remove gases

It removes the internal stresses developed during the previous process

To obtain desired ductility, malleability and toughness

It modifies the electrical and magnetic properties

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

Annealing

It is applied to castings and forgings.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

 Normalizing

Normalizing is also similar to annealing but the metal is air-cooled instead of other
mediums used in the furnace. Normalizing is usually done on carbon steel.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

 Normalizing

The steel is heated to a temperature of about 40° to 50°C above its upper
critical temperature. It is held at this temperature for a short duration.
The steel is then allowed cool in still air at room temperature, which is
known as air quenching.

Promote uniformity of structure

To secure grain refinement

To bring about desirable changes in the properties of steel

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

Normalizing

It is applied after cold working such as rolling, stamping and hammering.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

 Hardening

The main aim of the hardening process is

to make steel hard tough. Generally,
material in this condition is too brittle for
most practical uses, although this
treatment is the first step in the production
of high-strength steel.

There are three types of hardening process:

Case Hardening / Surface hardening

Differential hardening
Flame Hardening

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

 Hardening

Case Hardening / Surface hardening

Case hardening or surface hardening is a hardening heat-treatment
process. In the case of hardening, the complete metal piece is heated. But
in the case of case hardening, only the outer surface is heat-treated to
make it hardened. The inner metal is still soft and ductile. Case hardening
is widely used for the tool and die industry where the tool surface needed to
hardened but the inner metal piece has to remain ductile.
There are three types of case hardening process:

Nitriding
Cyaniding
Carburization

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

 Hardening

Case Hardening / Surface hardening

Nitriding

Nitriding is a case hardening process in which nitrogen gas is

used to harden the outer surface of the metal. The metal is
heated in an ammonia (NH ) atmosphere and then it is cooled.
During the whole process, ammonia defuses into nascent
hydrogen and nascent nitrogen. This nascent nitrogen diffuses
on the outer layer of metal form nitrite which increases the
surface hardness.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

 Hardening

Case Hardening / Surface hardening

Cyaniding

Cyaniding is a case hardening process in which the metal piece

is immersed in a bath of molten sodium or potassium cyanide.
After that, the metal piece is cooled into lime water so that
cyanide salt is sticking to the outer surface of the metal. This
cyanide salt is responsible for hardening the outer surface of
the metal.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

 Hardening

Case Hardening / Surface hardening

Carburization

In carburization, the hardness of the metal piece is increased

by increasing the carbon content. The metal piece is heated
below the melting point with the presence of high carbon
materials such as charcoal. The heated metal piece then
absorbs carbons to make it harder and more brittle.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

 Hardening

Differential Hardening
Differential hardening is a kind of hardening process in which different
area of the metal piece gets a different heat-treatment process. This is a
very popular hardening process for high end cutting tools.

Flame Hardening
In flame hardening, only a portion of the metal piece is hardened. This is
different from differential hardening where the whole metal piece is getting
hardened by the different heat-treatment processes.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

Hardening

It increases the hardness of steel.

To resist to wear

Allows the steel to cut other metals

To increase corrosion resistance

This method is effective for increasing the fatigue limit of medium and
small-sized parts such as gears, shafts, wrist pins etc.

To give clean, bright and pleasing appearance to the hardened surface

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

Hardening

It is applied for chisels, sledgehammer, centre punches, taps, dies, and

milling cutters, etc.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

 Tempering

Tempering is done on metals that are already

hardened. It is a process generally applied to
steel to relieve the strains induced during the
hardening process.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

 Tempering

The steel after being quenched in the hardening process is reheated to a

temperature slightly above the temperature range at which it is to be used, but
below the lower critical temperature. The temperature here varies from 100°C
to 700°C.

The reheating is done in a bath of oil or molten lead or molten salt. The
specimen is held in the bath for a period of time till attains the temperature
evenly, the time depends on the composition and desired quality of steel. Now
the specimen is removed from the bath and allow to cool slowly in still air.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

Tempering

To relieve internally stressed caused by hardening

To reduce brittleness

Improve ductility, strength and toughness

To increase wear resistance

To obtain desired mechanical properties

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

Tempering

It is applied to cutting tools, tool and gears, which are hardened by the
hardening process.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

 Furnaces in industrial settings heat up materials using fuel and
combustion gases. The material may be in direct contact with the fuel and its gases
(blast furnaces), indirect contact with the fuel but still in direct contact with the
gases (reverberatory), or indirect contact with both fuel and gases (muffle
furnaces). Nevertheless, the goal remains the same — attaining a high level of
heat.
Below are different furnaces that are used for heating metals in heat
treatment process:

Box type furnace Tempering Furnace

Bell-type furnace Salt bath furnace
Pit type furnace Rotary Furnace
Vacuum Furnace

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

Box type furnace

Used for heat-treating, calcining, curing, preheating,

tempering and other processes, box furnaces feature
vertical lift or swing open doors insulating the furnace
and ensuring consistent airflow management. Box
furnaces, which accept heavy loads, are set up to be
loaded by forklift, roller hearth, or other manual
processes. There are gas and electric versions available.
Able to uniformly treat large material volumes, box
furnaces are seen in laboratory and industrial
applications.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

Bell type furnace

Bell furnaces are electrically heated, gas-fired, or

thermal recirculation heating systems featuring a
movable dome. This furnace hood can be lifted
frequently throughout the vacuum or controlled
atmosphere processes. They are used to temper, anneal,
normalize, and stress relieve steel plate formed parts.
This equipment can be used with multiple bases and
still provide reliable seals. These furnaces (multi- or
single stack) are used to treat coils, strips, sheets, rods
and more.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

Pit type furnace

Available in gas-fired or electric-powered configurations,

pit furnaces are also known as top load furnaces.
Offered in many sizes, pit furnaces heat to different
temperatures within a secured working chamber with a
controlled atmosphere. These furnaces are often used in
automotive and aircraft part manufacturing as well as
machine building, wind energy, and mining.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

Salt bath furnace

Salt bath furnaces use the high-heat transfer

characteristics of convection to achieve very fast heating
of metal parts in heat treating applications, as much as
5X the rate of air furnaces. These furnaces are almost
invariably electric as electrodes can be immersed
directly in the molten salt, although externally heated
electric or gas-fired units are sometimes used. The
temperature of the bath depends on the varieties of
salts used, which are commonly cyanide mixtures and
chloride mixtures, with temperatures of 300-2350°F
possible.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

Tempering furnace

Designed to heat treat ferrous metal products,

tempering furnaces increase toughness. Heat treating
certain high strength materials can impact the alloy’s
formation and energy absorption.

To access the best balance of strength and elasticity,

tempering furnaces are often used in conjunction with
quenching furnaces. It is crucial that these furnaces
maintain uniform temperature levels throughout the
chamber to achieve the desired material characteristics.
Both gas and electric heating types of these furnaces
offer indirect fuel contact.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

Vacuum furnace

Vacuum furnaces are used in many industries. What

distinguishes this type of furnace is the vacuum
maintained throughout the heating process to protect
heated steel and metal parts. The furnace can be
electric or gas heated with pumps preserving the
vacuum to prevent oxidation, heat loss, or
contamination. These furnaces are used for annealing,
brazing, sintering, and heat treatment.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

Rotary furnace

Rotary Hearth furnaces have a lined furnace generally

welded from steel into a barrel shape. The furnace is
mounted on a drive which rotates the barrel throughout
the heat treatment. The material sample can be mixed
by tilting the furnace during rotation.

Highly heat efficient with easy pressurization, these

furnaces provide heat uniformity and good material
contact. The internal heat source can be gas or electric,
with the flow of muffled combustion gases often
countercurrent. Applications typically include
calcination and oxidation.

Introduction | Principle | Types | Process | Purpose | Application | Equipment

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