Heat treatment

Heat treatment is a series of operations involving heating or cooling of metals

to alter their physical and mechanical properties without changing the product
.shape
Heat treatment depends on the temperature and time required to produce *
the desired change
Manufacturing processes like forging, welding, rolling, casting, and other *
processes lead to internal stress and alteration to the mechanical properties of
.metals
Heat treatment of metals is carried out in three stages. They are heating, *
soaking (holding), and cooling
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Objective of heat treatment
1-heat treatment is used to increase the strength of the material,
2-improve machinability of metals and formability
3-restore ductility in cold-worked metals,
relieve internal stress-4
.Helps in shaping the metal better for specific applications -5
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Objective of softening processes
Reduce hardness or – 1
strength
Remove residual stress – 2
Improve toughness – 3
Restore ductility – 4
Refine grain size – 5

1
 Annealing

Annealing is a process of heating the metal and holding it at a specific

.temperature and then cooling the metal by controlled cooling
---------------------------------------------------------------
:Objective of Annealing processes
.To soften the metals. 5 - To relieve internal stresses - 1
.To improve machinability - 2
.To produce a definite microstructure. 3 - To refine grain size - 6
.To increase ductility of metal - 4
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Controlled cooling is done by leaving the material to cool slowly to room *
.temperature in a furnace
------------------------------------------------------------------------
2
 The types of annealing
Full annealing
Process annealing
Recrystallization annealing
Spheroidizing annealing
Homogenizing annealing
Isothermal annealing
----------------------------------------------------------------------
:Full annealing
Full annealing is the process of heating the metal above the critical temperature,
holding it for a specified period of time (1 – 2 h), and then cooling the metal
.slowly inside the furnace without any cooling medium
?Q: Why we use full annealing
Refine the grain structure - 1
Produce a lamellar Pearlite - 2

:Note
Full annealing: When an annealed
part is allowed to cool in the furnace
Normalizing: When an annealed part is removed from the furnace and
allowed to cool in air
---------------------------------------------------------------------
:Process (sub- critical) annealing

3
Process annealing; the metal is heated up to a temperature just below its lower
critical temperature (80°C to 170°C below the A1 temperature). It is then held for
a Specific time (2 to 4 hours) to remove internal stress, and then cooled down
slowly to room temperature
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
used to increase hardness and decrease ductility from cold-worked steels -
suited for low carbon steels -

:annealing Isothermal
annealing is Isothermal
the process of heating the steel above its critical temperature and then cooling the
steel below its critical temperature. The steel is then maintained in the same room
.temperature to obtain uniformity and then cooled to normal room temperature
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
It is suitable only for small-sized components -
would be suitable for large bars or large load in batch type furnaces -

4
----------------------------------------------------------------
:Spheriodizing annealing
It is a type of annealing which causes practically all carbides in the steel to -
.agglomerate in the form of small globules or spheroids
This method results in forming small globules called spheroids in the metal -
Spheroidising may be accomplished by heating to a temperature just below the -
.lower critical (about 30°C below the A1) and holding for several hours
used for all steel containing over 0.6 % carbon that are to be machined or cold -
formed

----------------------------------------------------------------
:Diffusion (Homogenizing) annealing
Homogenizing annealing is the process of eliminating chemical segregation by -
diffusion at a high temperature {above the upper critical temperature (1000-
1200°C)}
This process is used for annealing steels, aluminum ingots, and casting -
------------------------------------------------------------------------

5
:Recrystallization annealing
Recrystallization annealing is the process of changing the grain structure of the
metal. When the metal reaches a
specific temperature, known as the recrystallization temperature, new grains start
to develop in the cold-worked metal. In addition, any imperfections and
distortions caused by cold working removed
decrease hardness or strength and increase ductility -
used as an intermediate operation and as a final treatment -
applied on (heavy plan carbon steel casting - high alloy steel- castings) -
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Normalizing
.It is applicable only for ferrous metals -
Normalizing is achieved by heating the metal above its upper critical -
temperature (approximately 4°C), holding the metal for a specific time
and then cooling it in still air at room temperature to relieve the internal
.stress in the metal
Normalizing is similar to the full annealing treatment. The difference is -
in the cooling method and cooling rate
.used in the need of maximum toughness and external stress resistance -
----------------------------------------------------------------

:Objective of Normalizing processes

To increase strength of medium carbon steel - 1

6
To improve machinability of low carbon steel - 2
To improve the structure of welds - 3
To reduce internal stresses - 4
To eliminate coarse gain structure obtained during forging, rolling - 5
.and stamping
----------------------------------------------------------------
Normalizing vs Annealing
.Normalized steels are harder than annealed ones -
the annealing treatment more expensive than normalizing due to heat -
treatment time and high energy consumption
cooling rates not critical (not effective ) for normalizing as in the case -
.of annealing
----------------------------------------------------------------

Tempering

Tempering is heating quenched metal, hardend steel to a specific

temperature below its critical temperature and holding it for a specific
time, and then cooling the metal in air

Example of tempering
Martensitic structures formed by direct quenching of high-carbon steel -
are hard and strong
but brittle. They cannot be plastically deformed and have very little -
toughness. Some of the hardness and strength must be sacrificed to
obtain suitable ductility and toughness
7
.This is done by tempering the martensitic steel -
----------------------------------------------------------------
:Objective of Tempering processes
Increase toughness - 1
Decrease hardness & brittleness - 2
Relieve stresses - 3
Change volume - 4
Reducing cracking, increasing impact – 5
resistance

----------------------------------------------------------------
Tempering Method
Tempering of steel may be carried out in liquid baths such as (oil, salt -
or lead)
The bath being heated to the correct temperature -
Steel immersed in the bath for the determined length of time -
.is removed and allowed to cool to room temperature )steel( -
Hardening
Hardening is the process of heating the metal to the required temperature,
soaking the metal for a specific time, and cooling it rapidly by dipping
.the hot metal into a quenching medium such as (oil, water, or brine)
hardness an after -
hard structure extremely
martensite is known as
formed

8
: After hardening, steels must be tempered to -
Reduce the brittleness -1
Relieve the internal stresses -2
Obtain pre-determined mechanical properties -3
----------------------------------------------------------------

:Factors affecting on hardening processes

.Adequate carbon content to produce hardening - 1
.Heating rate and time - 2
.Quenching medium - 3
.Quenching rate - 4
.Size of the part - 5
---------------------------------------------------------------
Quenching
It is a method of hardening at which steel must be heated into the
.austenitic crystal phase and then quickly cooled
cooling may be done with forced air or other gas (such as nitrogen), oil, -
.polymer dissolved in water, or brine
--------------------------------------------------------------
9
 Quenching media
The quenching media in general use are
(ii) Brine (iii) Oils Water )i(
Air (v) Molten salt )iv(
---------------------------------------------------------------
Water
the most widely used, as it is simple and effective, cools at the rate of
982°C per second
Disadvantage: form bubbles on the surface of the metal being
quenched and causes soft spots. So a brine solution is often used to
prevent this trouble
Clear, cold water is very oftenly used -
Brine
.It is Polymer dissolved in water -
.A very rapid cooling agent -
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Oil
.It is used when there is any risk of distortion -
.more suitable for alloy steels than plain carbon steels -
.Fish oil, linseed oil or Cotton seed oil -
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Air blast
.Used When the risk of distortion is great -
.the rate of cooling is then lower -
.The air blast must be dry -
.any moisture in the air will crack the steel -
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Molten salts
.High speed steels are often quenched in molten salt to hardened them -
------------------------------------------------------------------------

10
 Hardening Methods
The most extensively used method is quenching in a single medium -
The disadvantage of this method, however, is that the cooling rate in the -
martensitic transformation range will be very high

:The various hardening methods are

Quenching in two media - 1
Hardening with self-tempering - 2
Stepped quenching or martempering - 3
Isothermal quenching or austempering - 4
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Quenching in two media
Metal first quenched in water to a temperature from 300°C to 400°C -
and then quickly transferred to a less intensive quenching medium (for
.example oil or air) where they are held until they are completely cooled
Quenching in two media is widely employed in the heat treatment of -
carbon steel tools (taps dies, milling cutters etc.)
----------------------------------------------------------------
Hardening with self-tempering
retain a certain amount of heat in core which accounts for the tempering (self- -
.tempering)
‫ ولكن يتم األحتفاظ بدرجه حراره مناسبه للب الداخلى‬quenching ‫حيث يتم عمل‬
‫ مره أخرى للحصول على سطح صلب ويكون‬tempering ‫ لعمل تطبيع‬core
‫ طري‬core ‫اللب الداخلى‬
11
This hardening is applied for chisels, sledge hammers, hand hammers, centre
punches and other tools that require a high surface hardness in conjunction
with tough core
Stepped quenching or martempering
After heating the steel to the hardening temperature, it is quenched in a medium -
.having a temperature, from 150° to 300°C
The metal is held until it reaches the temperature of medium and then it is cooled
further to room temperature in air and sometimes in oil
:Martempering has the following advantages -
Less volume changes occur due to the presence of a large amount of retained - 1
.austenite
Less warping- 2
Less danger of quenching cracks appearing in the metal - 3
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Isothermal quenching or austempering
It is performed in the same manner principally as martempering but with a longer -
holding time to ensure a sufficiently complete austenite decomposition
Molten salts are usually used as a medium in martempering and austempering -
Austempering process is being used for thin steel sections to obtain products free -
from cracks and with good impact resistance
------------------------------------------------------------------------

12
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mass effect is the variation in hardness across a section of the components
.having higher thickness through heat treatment
A part having less thickness will cool more quickly than a part having higher -
.thickness if both are cooled in the same quenching bath
.In a thicker component, outer layer will cool faster than the core -
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hardenability is defined as the ability of steel to develop its maximum hardness
.when subjected to the normal hardening heating and quenching cycle
Good hardenability is indicated by a greater depth of hardening below the -
.surface
Only the carbon content affects the maximum hardness -
The hardenability of a steel becomes greater as the percentage of carbon -
increases
:The "critical diameter” of a steel

13
The maximum diameter of bar in which, when quenched in a specified medium,
the steel will develop at the axis or at some other specified position, a specified
.hardness or ,a specified proportion of martensite in its structure
:The ruling section
is the maximum size of bar in which specified mechanical properties such as
ultimate tensile strength, yield point stress, elongation can be developed at the
.center by quenching in a specified manner
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Surface hardening
:Case hardening (by carburizing) -1
Case hardening ( surface hardening), is the process of hardening the surface of the
metal without changing its internal metal core
Case hardening is commonly used in manufacturing gears, splines, and other -
equipment’s
.Case hardening is also used in steels with low carbon content -
The carbon is added to the outer surface of the steel by heating steel in a medium -
.above its upper critical temperature
This leads to the decomposition of steel. carbon gets deposited on the surface of
the steel
When the steel is cooled rapidly, the outer surface becomes hard, leaving the inner
section soft, but very tough

:Objective of case hardening processes

.To obtain a hard and wear resistance surface - 1
.To obtain a tough core - 2
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

14
Carburizing is a process of adding carbon to the outer surface of low carbon steel.
This is done by placing the material in carbon-rich atmosphere above its critical
.temperature and allowing diffusion to transfer the carbon atoms in to the steel
Treating steels with high carbon content decrease the carbon content from steel -
resulting in decarburization
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Methods of adding carbon to the surface of the metal

Gas carburizing liquid carburizing Pack hardening

------------------------------------------------------------------------
:Pack carburizing
the parts are packed with carbonaceous compound in a clay-sealed box and
heated between 915-925°C
The carbonaceous compound liberates CO or carbon monoxide gas, which -
diffuses to yield CO2 or carbon dioxide and carbon atoms, which get absorbed by
.the steel surface

Wood charcoal is very largely used -

nd Hickory gives the best results and a A
ormal rate of penetration n
.fter 8 hours A
Wood charcoal gives the slowest rate of -
.enetration p

15
------------------------------------------------------------------------
:Liquid carburizing
Liquid carburizing uses a molten salt bath of cyanide. The parts are immersed in bath at
. temperatures
.Carbon from the molten salt bath gets diffused into the steel surface, making it hard
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
:Gas carburizing
uses natural gas, propane, or other hydrocarbons. The carbon atoms generated by
.the breakdown of the gas are absorbed and diffused into the steel at temperatures
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nitriding
Nitriding is the process of diffusing nitrogen into the steel surface. The diffusion
of nitrogen and steel leads to the formation of very hard iron and alloy nitrogen
.compounds
.are harder than carburized steels -
.Nitriding uses ammonia as the nitriding source -
.Hardness can be achieved without using any quenching medium -
The nitriding temperature of the steel is set below the lower critical -
.Temperature of steel
.At the nitriding temperature, ammonia dissociates into nitrogen and hydrogen -
.The nitrogen diffuses into steel and the hydrogen gets exhausted -
.The resulting steel is harder than tool steel or carburized steels -
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Cyaniding
The part is heated to 870-950°C in a bath of sodium cyanide (NaCN) and then is -
.quenched and rinsed, in water or oil, to remove any residual cyanide

16
.Cyaniding is mainly used on low carbon steels -
advantage of ( harder than the one produced by carburizing- 20 to 30 minutes -
compared to several hours)
.used on small parts -
.disadvantage (cyanide salts are poisonous ) -
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Flame hardening
It is a process of surface hardening by which steel or cast iron is raised to high
.temperature by a flame and then almost immediately quenched
.used for wheel teeth -
------------------------------------------------------------------------
HEAT TREATMENT FURNACES
Classification
Heat treatment furnaces may be broadly classified as follows
According to source of heat
Oil fired furnace (ii) Gas fired furnace (iii) Electric furnace )i(

According to type of work

Batch furnace (ii) Continuous furnace (iii) Semi-continuous furnace )i(

According to working environment

Air furnace (ii) Protective atmosphere furnace )i(
Special atmosphere furnace (used in chemical-heat treatment) )iii(
:Liquid bath furnaces )iv(
Salt bath )a(

17
Lead bath )b(
Oil bath )c(

18