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Effect of Alloy Composition on Carburizing Performance of Steel

  • Basic and Applied Research
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Abstract

This paper investigates the effect of alloy composition on the gas carburizing performance of AISI 1018, 4820, 5120, and 8620 steels. The mass-transfer coefficients and carbon diffusivities were calculated from experimental measurements using direct flux integration. Although steels with high concentration of austenite-stabilizing elements (Si, Ni) increased carbon diffusivity in austenite, they significantly reduced the kinetics of carbon transfer from the atmosphere to the steel surface and resulted in lower weight gain. Despite lowering the carbon diffusivities, steels alloyed with carbide-forming elements (Cr, Mo) significantly increased the mass-transfer coefficient in the atmosphere and enhanced the rate of carbon profile evolution. The experimentally determined carbon diffusivities were in good agreement with the carbon diffusivities obtained from the thermodynamic and kinetic databases in DICTRA. Overall, using the concentration dependent mass-transfer coefficient and carbon diffusivity in various alloy steels helped explain the experimentally observed variations in the carbon concentration profiles and the effective case depths. Recommendations are made to help achieve better case depth uniformity within a carburizing workload.

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Acknowledgments

The support of the Center for Heat Treating Excellence (CHTE) at Worcester Polytechnic Institute and the member companies is gratefully acknowledged. The experimental work was performed at Caterpillar Inc. and its support through facilities and experimental work is greatly appreciated. The access to Thermo-Calc and DICTRA for this project is also gratefully acknowledged.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Caterpillar, Inc., Technical Center, Mossville, IL, USA

    Olga K. Rowan

  2. Center for Heat Treating Excellence, Materials Science and Engineering, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, 100 Institute Road, Worcester, MA, 01609, USA

    Richard D. Sisson Jr.

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  1. Olga K. Rowan
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  2. Richard D. Sisson Jr.
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Correspondence to Olga K. Rowan.

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Rowan, O.K., Sisson, R.D. Effect of Alloy Composition on Carburizing Performance of Steel. J. Phase Equilib. Diffus. 30, 235–241 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11669-009-9500-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11669-009-9500-7

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