Typically steel is heat treated in a multi-step process. First it is heated to create a solid solution of iron and carbon in a process called austenizing. Austenizing is followed by quenching to produce a matensitic microstructure. The steel is then tempered by heating between the ranges of 150-260 °C (302-500 °F) and 370-650 °C (698-1,202 °F). Tempering is in the range of 260-370 °C (500-698 °F) is sometimes avoided to reduce temper brittling. The steel is held at that temperature until the carbon trapped in the martensite diffuses to produce a chemical composition with the potential to create either bainite or pearlite (a crystal structure formed from a mixture of ferrite and cementite). It should be noted that when producing a truly bainitic or pearlitic steel the steel must be once again taken up to the austenite region (austenizing) and cooled slowly to a controlled temperature before being fully quenched to a low temperature. In bainitic steels, upper bainite or lower bainite may form depending on the length and temperature of the tempering process. It is thermodynamically impossible that the martensite will be totally converted during tempering, so a mixture of martensite, bainite, ferrite, and cementite is often formed.Teksty umieszczone na naszej stronie są własnością wytwórni, wykonawców, osób mających do nich prawa.
