Carburizing

Standard – UNI 5381
Typical Materials – Steels such as 20MnCr5, 20NiCrMo2, 18NiCrMo5, etc.
Achievable Metallurgical Characteristics – Surface hardness ranging from 55-65 HRC
– Effective treatment depths from 0.10 to 3.00 mm

Carburizing (or case hardening) is a process typically applied to finished parts after the main mechanical machining processes. It may often be necessary to perform grinding after carburizing.

Carburizing allows components to achieve a high surface hardness while maintaining good core toughness.
The treatment is typically used for shafts, gears, pinions, and other mechanical components that are highly stressed due to wear, bending, and/or tensile stresses.

The process involves heating to austenitizing temperatures, typically between 850-950°C, in an atmosphere that enables surface carbon enrichment. By varying the residence time at this temperature, it is possible to control the depth of carburizing as required by design. Austenitizing is always followed by quenching through rapid cooling in oil to stabilize the microstructure.
Subsequently, tempering is performed at temperatures ranging between 120-250°C, depending on the desired surface hardness.