Hardness

Introduction
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.
Grain Structures
 Hardenability
Hardenability, which is a measure of the depth
of full hardness achieved, is related to the type
and amount of alloying elements. Different
alloys, which have the same amount of Carbon
content, will achieve the same amount of
maximum hardness; however, the depth of full
hardness will vary with the different alloys. The
reason to alloy steels is not to increase their
strength, but increase their hardenability — the
ease with which full hardness can be achieved
throughout the material.
 Hardenability

Usually when hot steel is quenched, most of the

cooling happens at the surface, as does the
hardening. This propagates into the depth of the
material. Alloying helps in the hardening and by
determining the right alloy one can achieve the
desired properties for the particular application.
Such alloying also helps in reducing the need for a
rapid quench cooling — thereby eliminate distortions
and potential cracking. In addition, thick sections can
be hardened fully.
 Quench Media
Quenching is the act of rapidly cooling
the hot steel to harden the steel.
 Water

Water: Quenching can be done by plunging the hot

steel in water. The water adjacent to the hot steel
vaporizes, and there is no direct contact of the
water with the steel. This slows down cooling until
the bubbles break and allow water contact with the
hot steel. As the water contacts and boils, a great
amount of heat is removed from the steel. With
good agitation, bubbles can be prevented from
sticking to the steel, and thereby prevent soft spots.
 Water

Water is a good rapid quenching medium,

provided good agitation is done. However, water
is corrosive with steel, and the rapid cooling can
sometimes cause distortion or cracking.
 Salt Water

Salt Water: Salt water is a more rapid quench

medium than plain water because the bubbles are
broken easily and allow for rapid cooling of the
part. However, salt water is even more corrosive
than plain water, and hence must be rinsed off
immediately
 Oil

Oil is used when a slower cooling rate is desired.

Since oil has a very high boiling point, the
transition from start of Martensite formation to
the finish is slow and this reduces the likelihood
of cracking. Oil quenching results in fumes, spills,
and sometimes a fire hazard.
 Polymer Quench
Polymer quenches that will produce a cooling rate
in between water and oil. The cooling rate can be
altered by varying the components in the mixture-
as these are composed of water and some glycol
polymers. Polymer quenches are capable of
producing repeatable results with less corrosion
than water and less of a fire hazard than oil. But,
these repeatable results are possible only with
constant monitoring of the chemistry.
 Cryogenic Quench

Cryogenics or deep freezing is done to make sure

there is no retained Austenite during quenching.
The amount of Martensite formed at quenching is
a function of the lowest temperature encountered.
At any given temperature of quenching there is a
certain amount of Martensite and the balance is
untransformed Austenite. This untransformed
Austenite is very brittle and can cause loss of
strength or hardness, dimensional instability, or
cracking.
 Cryogenic Quench

Quenches are usually done to room temperature.

Most medium carbon steels and low alloy steels
undergo transformation to 100% Martensite at
room temperature. However, high carbon and
high alloy steels have retained Austenite at room
temperature. To eliminate retained Austenite, the
quench temperature has to be lowered. This is
the reason to use cryogenic quenching.