Heat treatment occurs when a metal is heated and then cooled in order to change its shape and structure. The temperature metals are heated to and the rate of cooling after heat treatment can significantly change steel castings’ properties. The most common reasons metals undergo heat treatment are to improve their strength, hardness, toughness, ductility, and corrosion resistance. Below are the processes involved in heat-treating baskets.
How Are Heat Treating Baskets Made?
Annealing
Annealing is applied when steel is treated at a high temperature and then cooled very slowly to room temperature to produce its high ductility and strength. Otherwise stated, annealing is performed by heating a component at a certain temperature level before it gets soaked at room temperature.
Tempering
When steel has both been quenched and hardened for a period of time prior to being heated, the process involved would be tempering. The temperature at which this procedure is carried out is an important factor that dictates the hardness and strength that is obtained. For instance, high temperatures will produce high ductility, but low hardness and strength. On the other hand, low temperatures will result in low ductility, but high hardness and strength. It’s extremely essential to choose the proper tempering temperature to achieve the desired level of hardness and strength. Tempering is performed on carbon steels that have been hardened to reduce their brittleness.
Hardening
This process involves the heating of steel at a specific temperature until its pearlite is transformed into austenite before it is rapidly quenched in water or oil. The appropriate temperature at which the transformation quickly takes place is highly dependent upon the steel’s carbon content. For the core to be fully transformed into austenite, the heating time must be increased.
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