Heat Treating Metal: An Overview

Altering the properties of a metal requires the application of heat, or removing heat using a quenching technique. Treating metal with heat, or cooling it after it really is heated, can alter the next properties to various degrees: ductility, hardness, softness, stress, and tensile strength. To attain  https://www.linkedin.com/company/all-steel-fabricating-inc/  or more of these properties, a number of of the next treatments may be used: annealing, tempering, hardening, quenching, normalizing, and stress relieving. A synopsis of each treatment is listed below:

Annealing

Annealing removes stresses or induces softness to improve ductility or formability, respectively. Common forms of annealing include:

Bright annealing- Bright annealing is conducted in a vacuum furnace, bell annealer, or controlled atmosphere furnace to avoid oxidation. It really is typically performed on chromium alloys such as for example stainless steel.
Process annealing- Process annealing makes metal easier to cold roll or draw. It can also ensure it is more formable for bending applications.
Recovery annealing- Recovery annealing restores ductility and reduces stresses in cold worked metal.
Full annealing- Full annealing produces the softest, most stress-free metal. It really is typically performed to make metal easier to machine, or even to improve its dimensional stability.

Annealing occurs in a temperature range of 300�F - 2250�F.

Tempering

Tempering reduces stresses and unwanted hardness due to quenching. It is often performed after quenching that follows brazing or annealing. The tempering process occurs in a temperature selection of 350�F - 1250�F.

Hardening

Hardening is a heating treating process that improves the mechanical properties and hardness of metals. It really is typically performed in the form of "quenching." Common hardening methods include:

Water quenching- Water quenching improves the strength and hardness of low and medium carbon steel.
Oil quenching- Oil quenching improves the strength and hardness of medium and high carbon steel.
Air quenching- Air quenching improves the strength and hardness of low and medium carbon steel while reducing the risk of distortion.
Age hardening- Age hardening is performed on alloys that harden because of age or the current presence of precipitation.

Hardening takes place in a temperature range of 300�F - 2250�F.

Normalizing

Normalizing is performed on ferrous metals to increase their mechanical properties, or to improve their response to the hardening process. Normalizing occurs in a temperature range of 1600�F - 1800�F.

Stress Relieving

Stress relieving relieves stresses in metal to improve dimensional stability and tensile strength. Common types of stress inducers include: flame cutting, cold working, quenching, and welding fabrication. The stress relieving process occurs in a temperature selection of 300�F - 1400�F.

Conclusion

The list above is a basic summary of heat treating processes offered by professional metal treatment services. Whenever a company must alter the properties of metal pieces or assemblies, having them treated with one of these processes may bring remarkable cost savings in comparison to buying new components. For more info on the processes above along with other metal working processes such as brazing, contact a metal treatment service today.