Análisis microestructural del tratamiento termoquímico de cementación y temple a temperaturas intercríticas, con revenido posterior, en un acero 1020.

Abstract

The present document aims to show the results of a research in which a microstructural characterization of an AISI 1020 steel has been carried out. This steel has previously gone through to a carburizing treatment with a subsequent water quenching. After this, the steel has been submitted to an annealing process at a temperature of 390°C through three different amounts of time: 5, 10 and 15 minutes, being quenched in water afterwards. The aim of this research is to evaluate the microstructural behavior of the base material with the treatment of cementation and tempering at intercritical temperatures, since these are not commonly used in the industry when carrying out such treatments, and the effect of different annealing times using the temperature obtained by calculating a martensite start temperature (Ms). In order to achieve these objectives, after the previous thermal treatments, the samples of treated steel are analyzed microstructurally with a metallographic microscope and this study is complemented with the use of electronic scanning electron microscopy (SEM), the hardness profiles of each one of the samples will be evaluated from the outer edge towards the center, taking into account the phase change of the material after being exposed to the carbon. Finally, the obtained microstructures and the percentage of carbon present in each of them will be analyzed.