Mold and Die Design

ASSIGNMENT #2
Victor Cavazos A01177055

Heat treatments for steel

It is defined as the thermal process a steel goes thorugh in order to change its
microstructure and therefore its mechanical properties such as hardness,
conductivity, etc.
There are 4 types of heat treatments:
Annealing: The steel is heated slowly to its adequate temperature and then let it
cool off by itself or by covering in an insulating material, this way the steel will go
through a slow process. With annealing the steel will loose hardening properties
and will be relieved of stress, will be more ductile.
Normalizing: This process is similiar to annealing with the diference that a the
steel is cooled off by air after heating it. This makes the metal to loose any internal
stress but it keeps it with high toughness and high ductility.
Quenching: It is the process in which after heating the steel, it is rapidly cooled off,
normally with water or oil. This results in a harden steel, very strong and brittle with
low ductility.
Tempering: This process consists on heating a steel that was harden to below its
melting point and keeping it in this temperature for a certain amount of time, after
this it is cooled off by itself. This helps in softening the steel a desired amount,
gaining ductility and avoiding its brittleness.

Bibbliography:
The 4 types of heat treatment steel undergoes, (07/14/2020). Kloeckner metals.
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of-heat-treatment-steel-undergoes/