Title

Chemistry of Quenching

Authorship

TOTTEN, GEORGE E.; WEBSTER, GLENN M.; ULISSES, CELSO

TOTTEN, GEORGE E.

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WEBSTER, GLENN M.

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ULISSES, CELSO

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DOI

10.5151/2594-5327-49v8-241-254

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Abstract

Quenching is often referred to as the "black hole" of heat treating. In many heat treating shops, there is often only minimal understanding of the quenching process itself. There have been a number of recent publications interrelating various fundamental principles involved in quenching such as surface wetting, a surface chemical phenomenon, and heat transfer, a physical chemical phenomenon, with as-quenched metallurgical properties such as hardness and distortion. However, relatively little information is available integrating the importance of both chemical properties of the quenchant, including organic, physical, and surface chemical properties, in achieving the desired metallurgical result. The objective of this paper is to review the impact of selected chemical processes on the quenching performance of oil and polymer quenchants. Some of the topics to be discussed include the effect of chemical composition, surface wetting, viscosity, oxidative stability, quenchant solvation, and shear stability. This information will enable the heat treater to better understand the role of the quenchant in the quenching process, resulting in more effective quenchant selection and quality control procedures.

Keywords

quenching, tratamento térmico, propriedades químicas, fluido de têmpera, estabilidade oxidativa