| If you wanted to improve wear resistance of your | | | | iron / carbon (Fe-C) matrix to a place where they |
| steel products, reduce waste and increase your | | | | are more atomically attracted. Modification to this |
| profits at the same time, then it's better for you to | | | | carbon structure is technically called the precipitation |
| know how cryogenic treatment or cold treatment | | | | of eta-carbides. It can vastly improve wear |
| can give you all of that. | | | | resistance of carbon steels, cast irons, etc. The more |
| This information from studies on cryogenic material | | | | carbon means the better the effect to your material, |
| treatment will give you ideas on how minus 300 | | | | but the less ductile that the metal becomes. |
| degrees Fahrenheit of liquid nitrogen enhance wear | | | | Therefore, you need experts in doing the balancing |
| resistance of your steel. | | | | act of having high carbon for high wear resistance |
| It was found out that there are three mechanisms | | | | versus not too much in applying cold treatment. |
| that are related to cryogenic processing of steels | | | | 3. Residual stress relief |
| which are important to know, and these are the | | | | Matter is at its most relaxed condition when it has |
| following: | | | | the smallest amount of kinetic energy or molecular |
| 1. Cryogenic material processing enhances the | | | | activity. With proper cryogenic treatment, which was |
| transformation of austenite (soft phase of iron) to | | | | found out to be deep cryogenic treatment, any |
| martensite (hard phase of iron) | | | | metal will be relaxed and residual stresses relieved |
| It is a one-time enduring process and it influences the | | | | perhaps the least recognized benefit of this cold |
| entire cross-section of the material. It offers more | | | | treatment process. |
| uniform grain structure, free of imperfections and | | | | You have two options in enhancing wear resistance |
| voids, which contribute to developed thermal | | | | of your steel products by cryogenic processing; |
| properties, (e.g. better heat dissipation). | | | | shallow and deep cryogenic treatment process. But |
| 2. Precipitation of eta-carbides in carbon steel | | | | deep cryogenic processing brought much in enhancing |
| improves wear resistance | | | | wear resistance compared to conventional heat |
| Carbon is vital to wear resistance of your steel | | | | treatment and shallow cryogenic treatment. |
| products. A team of Japanese researchers in a | | | | Now with your products being enhanced in resistance |
| technical paper presented at ISIJ documented this | | | | against wear, you will gain more satisfied customers |
| mechanism. When carbon steels undertake a | | | | and eventually will get more profit and make the |
| cryogenic treatment, free carbon atoms are able to | | | | best out of cryogenic treatment process. |
| position themselves within the chemical lattice of the | | | | |