Heat treating, a process that is used to harden or soften metals by heating and cooling them until they achieve their desired point of hardness, is often performed on stainless steel. In this metal, the structure and composition of the grains, or crystallites, determines its overall mechanical qualities.
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Solar Atmospheres, Inc.Souderton, PA 800-347-3236 Solar Atmospheres, Incorporated specializes in heat treating stainless steel, among many other services. With processing expertise and responsive service, Solar will process your small or large parts efficiently with its unique range of 40 vac. furnaces. Sizes range from lab furnaces to the world`s largest commercial model, a 36 foot long furnace with 150,000 lb. load capacity.
Vac Met IncorporatedWarren, MI 586-264-8100 Vac-Met offers specialized abilities, knowledge, training and experience to help solve the problems peculiar to the processing and fabricating of today`s technologically advanced materials. Vac Met's engineers work closely with each customer in determining their particular need, providing precision heat treating stainless steel services with the quality assurance you deserve. Please call today.
Saran Industries, L.P.Indianapolis, IN 866-585-8024 SARAN INDUSTRIES, L.P., is a family owned and operated business founded in 1964. Saran Industries became a leader in heat treating stainless steel among other related services with sites across the United States. In 1979, Saran Industries moved to their current thirty acre campus located on the Eastside of Indianapolis, Indiana. For quality products and services, choose Saran.
Byron ProductsFairfield, OH 513-870-9111 Byron Products has earned a reputation as a leader in supplying quality parts and services for a wide and diverse group of clients. "WHATEVER IT TAKES" is Byron's daily motto and by that statement the employees at Byron are dedicated to supplying their customers with the best service at competitive pricing in heat treating stainless steel and many other related processes. Call today!
Hayes Heat Treating Corp.Cranston, RI 401-467-5201 For 50 years Hayes has specialized in heat treating stainless steel in addition to numerous other similar services, serving many customers from a variety of fields such as the aerospace, automotive, electronic, medical and machine tool industries. Hayes' experienced employees are dedicated to helping your business move forward and will put their experience toward finding you the perfect solution.
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Heat Treating Stainless Steel
Heat treating is an energy-intensive process that changes this atomic structure, therefore changing its mechanical behavior. Steel and stainless steel are the most commonly heat treated metals. During heat treatment, the metal undergoes heating and cooling to change or alter its size, shape and surface. Its mechanical, chemical and physical properties can all be changes as well. Several important techniques are employed during the heat treating process, such as annealing, quenching, tempering and case hardening. Annealing is a process by which a metal is heated and then cooled very slowly, leaving the metal soft and ductile. Quenching on the other hand refers to the rapid cooling of metal and is often used to increase stainless steel's strength. Tempering, in contrast, is performed to strengthen the stainless steel. In tempering, the steel is heated to extreme heat, between 400 and 600 degrees Celsius, and maintained at this temperature until the carbon diffuses to produce bainite or pearlite. Case hardening involves combining the ductility of low carbon materials with the strength of high carbon through the creation of a tough outer coating which surrounds a softer more malleable core.
By heat treating stainless steel, improvements can be made regarding its hardness and ductility. The metals tensile, impact and yield strength can also be improved. Stainless steel is made into sheet metal by melting and pressing slabs and rods of steel and alloys into rectangular shapes. Stainless steel is found in three main grades, which are 304, 316 and 410. It can also be found in different gauges ranging from 8 to 30 (where the higher the number, the thinner the metal). Once it is made into the sheets it can undergo additional heat treatment and fabrication to form it into various products. Many different kinds of equipment, including furnaces, torches, salt bathes, heating blankets, and lasers, are used during the heat treating process. Heat treating is used to make a variety of stainless steel products for the automotive, construction, manufacturing, and tool and die industries, amongst others. Products include car bodies, storage tanks, aircraft panels and ventilation systems.
