Effect of heat treatment on hardness and wear resistance of high carbon-high chromium steel (FMU-11)

Abstract

In the present study, microstructure, hardness, and abrasion resistance of a heat-treated high carbon-high chromium steel (FMU-11) used in the cement mills were investigated. To investigate the best heat-treating cycle for the FMU-11 steel, three sets of samples were heat treated. The first set was tempered two times, the second set was re-hardened, and the third set was cryogenically heat treated. These samples were then compared with the conventionally heat-treated samples. The samples' microstructure was studied using an optical microscope, where traditional black and white etching, as well as color etching, were used. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was applied for higher magnification studies and in-depth analysis of the chemical composition. The mechanical properties were investigated by measuring the hardness and the wear resistance for the samples heat-treated in different cycles. The results showed that the cryogenic treatment and double-tempered samples had the highest hardness and wear resistance. In addition, the results showed that the re-hardening operation caused the carbides to be finely separated and evenly distributed in the steel matrix. The wear test results illustrated that the wear mechanism could be the delamination wear and the abrasive wear combined.

Study on the effect of tempering on the impact abrasive wear performance of 45Si2MnCr2Mo ultra-high strength steel

“…Tempering heat treatment is an important part of UHSS processing [10] . There are many studies on the influence of thermal treatment on the wear performance of ultra-high strength steel [11][12][13][14] . Still, there are few studies [6,15,16] on the influence of tempering thermal treatment on the impact of abrasive wear resistance of UHSS [15] .…”

Effects of Repeated Heat Treatments on the Wear Resistance of Pre-Carburized Steel

“…Steel (EN-353) is a readily available and inexpensive material, suitable for hard applications. Heat treatment of Steel (EN-353) has been reported to enhance its hardness, strength, and reduce internal stress, with the microstructure undergoing a transformation from Ferrite to Martensite [6]. The characteristics of polished steel, galvanized steel, and Q-345 have been examined using SEM and energy dispersion [7].…”

“…The first group was subjected to dilution twice, the second group was reformed, and the third group underwent heat treatment. The results demonstrated that the samples subjected to refrigeration treatment and dual dilution possessed superior hardness and wear resistance [9]. Steel (EN-8), a renowned grade used extensively in the production of axles, cranks, screws, gears, and studs, has been subjected to various heat treatment methods, including annealing, normalizing, and dilution.…”