A study of the pack carburizing quenching treatment with cane molasses cooling medium effect on the wear resistance of low carbon steel

Abstract

In the present study, various quenching media were added as cooling media for the quenching after pack carburizing treatment. The aim of this research is to get a suitable cooling medium for pack carburizing quenching treatment to increase the wear resistance of low carbon steel. Many cylindrical specimens for the adhesion wear tests were prepared from the used SS400 steel according to ASTM G99-04 specifications. Two heat treatment processes, namely pack carburizing and quenching were done. Firstly, the specimens are pack-carburized at a temperature of 875 °C, soaking time of 2 hours and quenched. The carburizing agent consists of Pinctada maxima shell powder (PMSP) and corn cob charcoal with a weight ratio of 30:70 %. Different cooling media (water, 10 % NaCl solution, 10 % cane molasses) in the pack carburizing quenching treatment are subjected to different kinds of tests. The hardness test was performed using Vickers micro hardness tester, the wear resistance was used in adhesive wear test, the carbon content was determined and microstructure examination was made using a scanning electron microscope (SEM-EDX). The result showed that all cooling media contributed to an increase in mechanical properties (surface hardness number, wear resistance), carbon content and microstructure change. The use of cooling media in the pack carburizing quenching process generally increases the surface hardness number of the specimen. The highest surface hardness number was 595 kg/mm2, respectively using 10 % cane molasses. The work shows that cane molasses can be used as a cooling medium for pack carburizing quenching of SS400 steel and contributed to the improvement of wear resistance

Effect of carbonization on the mechanical properties of mild steel utilizing oak charcoal as a carbon source

“…The maximum hardness value of 99.3 H RB is achieved after 75 minutes at 930 °C, but after 75 minutes at 830 °C, the hardness rating drops to a minimum of 88.4 H RB . Carburizing is a procedure that entails introducing carbon to the external surface of steel components to enhance their strength and durability [8,15]. As shown in Figure 8, there is a relationship between the hardness values and the carburized temperature.…”

“…The highest tensile strength value, 1030 MPa, was achieved at a carburizing temperature of 930 °C with a soaking time of 75 minutes. Therefore, carburizing is a process that involves adding carbon to the outer layer of steel components to increase their strength and durability [9,15] . Consequently, the carburized samples have a higher ultimate tensile strength than the raw material.…”

“…In addition, specimens immersed for 25 minutes at a temperature of 830 °C had a maximum strain of 0.198. A possible reason for this phenomenon is that a temperature of 830 °C is insufficient to induce carbonization [15]. When oak is used as a carbonaceous substrate for the production of carburized steel, the strain value in the initial material reduces from 0.3273 to 0.113.…”

“…Increasing mild steel durability was the goal. All chilling techniques improved steel's mechanical properties, carbon content, and microstructure [15]. Quenching quickly cools metal to attain mechanical characteristics.…”

Effect of pack carburizing with chicken egg shell powder agent and vibrator quenching on the mechanical properties of AISI 9310 steel

“…Quenching treatment using 10 % cane molasses cooling media after pack carburizing caused a significant increase in carbon content, the surface hardness of SS400 low carbon steel [14]. The viscosity of the cooling medium reduces the intensity of quenching.…”