steels is the heating and cooling of metals to change their physical and mechanical properties,

without letting it change its shape. Heat treatment could be said to be a method for strengthening
materials but could also be used to alter some mechanical properties such as improving
formability, machining, etc. The most common application is metallurgical but heat treatment of
metals can also be used in the manufacture of glass, aluminum, steel and many more materials.

He
at Treatment of Steels
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.
Heat Treatment Processes
Hardening
Hardening involves heating of steel, keeping it at an appropriate temperature until all pearlite is
transformed into austenite, and then quenching it rapidly in water or oil. The temperature at
which austentizing rapidly takes place depends upon the carbon content in the steel used. The
heating time should be increased ensuring that the core will also be fully transformed into
austenite. The microstructure of a hardened steel part is ferrite, martensite, or cementite.

Tempering
Tempering involves heating steel that has been quenched and hardened for an adequate period of
time so that the metal can be equilibrated. The hardness and strength obtained depend upon the
temperature at which tempering is carried out. Higher temperatures will result into high ductility,
but low strength and hardness. Low tempering temperatures will produce low ductility, but high
strength and hardness. In practice, appropriate tempering temperatures are selected that will
produce the desired level of hardness and strength. This operation is performed on all carbon
steels that have been hardened, in order to reduce their brittleness, so that they can be used
effectively in desired applications.

Annealing
Annealing involves treating steel up to a high temperature, and then cooling it very slowly to
room temperature, so that the resulting microstructure will possess high ductility and toughness,
but low hardness. Annealing is performed by heating a component to the appropriate
temperature, soaking it at that temperature, and then shutting off the furnace while the piece is in
it. Steel is annealed before being processed by cold forming, to reduce the requirements of load
and energy, and to enable the metal to undergo large strains without failure.
Normalizing
Normalizing involves heating steel, and then keeping it at that temperature for a period of time,
and then cooling it in air. The resulting microstructure is a mixture of ferrite and cementite which
has a higher strength and hardness, but lower ductility. Normalizing is performed on structures
and structural components that will be subjected to machining, because it improves the
machinability of carbon steels.

Carburization
Carburization is a heat treatment process in which steel or iron is heated to a temperature, below
the melting point, in the presence of a liquid, solid, or gaseous material which decomposes so as
to release carbon when heated to the temperature used.
 Me
lonite formation by heat treatment of steels
The outer case or surface will have higher carbon content than the primary material. When the
steel or iron is rapidly cooled by quenching, the higher carbon content on the outer surface
becomes hard, while the core remains tough and soft.

Surface Hardening
In many engineering applications, it is necessary to have the surface of the component hard
enough to resist wear and erosion, while maintaining ductility and toughness, to withstand
impact and shock loading. This is known as surface hardening. This can be achieved by local
austentitizing and quenching, and diffusion of hardening elements like carbon or nitrogen into
the surface. Processes involved for this purpose are known as flame hardening, induction
hardening, nitriding and carbonitriding.
1.1  Introduction
Heat treatment is a method used to alter the physical, and
sometimes chemical, properties of a material. Heat treatment
involves the use of heating or chilling, normally to extreme
temperatures, to achieve a desired result such as hardening or
softening of a material. Or Heat treatment is the controlled
heating and cooling of metals to alter their physical and
mechanical properties without changing the product shape.
Heat treatment is defined as an operation or combination of
heating and cooling of a metal or alloy in the solid state for the
purpose of obtaining desired change in properties. The heat
treatment includes
 Heating the metal to pre determined temperature
 Holding the metal at that temp until the structure becomes
uniform throughout the mass.
 Cooling at pre determined rate to cause formation of
desired change.
1.2 Objectives
 To increase the hardness of metals
 To relieve internal stress
 To improve machinability
 To improve mechanical properties like tensile strength,
ductility and shock resistance
  To change in grain size
 To increase resistance to heat and corrosion
 To modify electrical and magnetic properties
 To change in chemical composition of metal surface
 To remove gases
1.3 Types of heat treatment processes
1. Annealing
2. Normalizing
3. Hardening
4. Tempering
5. Case hardening
i. Carburizing
ii. Cyaniding
iii. Nitriding
6. Surface hardening
i. Induction hardening
ii. Flame hardening
      7. Diffusion coating
1.3.1 Annealing
The process consists of slow heating the steel slightly above (30-
50oC) the critical point (AC3) for hypo eutectoid (GS) and the
same amount above PSK for the hyper eutectoid holding it at
this temp for considerable period (3.4 min/mm length of piece);
slow cooling in sand (the rate of cooling from 30 oC to 200oC
depends upon the composition of the steel. The grain structure
has coarse Pearlite with ferrite or Cementite (depending on
whether hypo or hyper eutectoid). The steel becomes soft and
ductile.
Austenite     - Pearlite and Ferrite (Hypo eutectoid)
- Pearlite (Eutectoid)
- Pearlite + Cementite (Hyper eutectoid)
 Fig. 4.1.1 Temperature ranges for various heat treatment
process
The purpose of annealing may involve one or more of the
following aims:
 To soften the steel and to improve machinability.
 To relieve internal stresses induced by some previous
treatment (rolling, forging, uneven cooling).
 To remove coarseness of grain.
  To refine the grain size and structure to improve strength
and ductility.
 To alter electrical and magnetic properties.
1.3.2 Normalizing
It consists of heating the metal to a temperature just above the
critical point (40-50oC) above AC3 line GS and ACm (GSE)
within the normalizing range, holding it at this temp for period
of 15 min and cooling in still air to room temperature. This
process provides a homogeneous structure consisting of ferrite
and pearlite for hypo eutectoid steels and pearlite and cementite
for hyper eutectoid steels.  This is done,
 To produce a harder and stronger steel than full annealing
 To refine the grain structure of steel to improve the
machinability and tensile strength.
 To modify and refine the grain structure
 To obtain a relatively good ductility without reducing the
hardness and strength
 
Fig. 4.1.2 Normalizing process
Hardness is a function of the carbon content of the steel.
Hardening of a steel requires a change in structure from the
body-centered cubic structure found at room temperature to the
face-centered cubic structure found in the austenitic region. The
steel is heated to autenitic region. When suddenly quenched, the
martensite is formed. This is a very strong and brittle structure.
When slowly quenched it would form austenite and pearlite
which is a partly hard and partly soft structure. When the
cooling rate is extremely slow then it would be mostly pearlite
which is extremely soft.
 

Fig.4.1.3 Structure of steel when heated to critical stage

1.3.3 Hardening
It consists of heating the steel to a temperature above the critical
point (30-50oC) above AC3 line; holding it at this temperature
for a considerable period; quenching (sudden cooling) in water,
oil/molten salt solution. The heating operation is required form
the purpose of transforming the ferrite and pearlite for hypo
eutectoid steels and pearlite and cementite for hyper eutectoid
steels into austenite. A rapid cooling form the hardened
temperature causes austenite to be transformed into martensite
which is very hard and brittle.
 Fig.4.1.4. Hardening process
This is done to develop hardness to resist wear and to improve
strength, elasticity, ductility and toughness and to enable it to cut
other metals (to make it suitable for cutting tools).
1.3.4 Tempering
The steel hardened by rapid quenching is very hard and brittle. It
also contains internal stresses, which are severe and unequally
distributed to cause cracks or even rupture of hardened steel.
Tempering is a process done subsequent to quench hardening.
Quench-hardened parts are often too brittle. This brittleness is
caused by a predominance of martensite. This brittleness is
removed by tempering. Tempering results in a desired
combination of hardness, ductility, toughness, strength, and
structural stability. It consists of reheating the steel after
hardening to a temperature below the critical point (PSK line);
holding it for a considerable period and slow cooling (4-5 min/
mm). This is done to reduce the brittleness of the hardened steel
and thus to increase ductility. to relieve the internal stresses and
to make the steel tough to resist shock and fatigue.