Steel heat treatment: Equipment and process design

Abstract

Steel owing to its strength, cost and versatility is regarded as the backbone of engineering materials. Despite having numerous benefits in its natural state, it can further be subjected to various treatments and processes to make it fit for various high-end applications. Heat treatment which involves heating steel to a certain temperature range and subsequently cooling at a specified rate is one such treatment due to which the steel acquires properties suitable to specific applications. Design of equipment such as furnaces, quenching tanks, heating elements and process design plays a pivotal role in ensuring the effective heat treatment process. Hence, it is imperative that both equipment and process must be carefully designed to ensure the production of quality products. The purpose of this chapter is to provide an in-depth overview of the process and equipment design associated with the heat treatment of steel and highlights the requirement for the selection of particular equipment or process. Moreover, it also covers the effect of heat treatment processes on the properties of steel, the factors that govern the quality of the end product, the challenges and the future roadmap associated with the heat treatment of steel.