HEAT TREATMENTS AND THEIR EFFECTS ON TOUGHNESS

MFET 3750
KELBY SAYER

INTRODUCTION
All heat treating methods consist of a three part time-temperature cycle, which is heating,
soaking, and cooling. Each method consists of a different amount of time in each part. This lab
will cover full annealing, spheroidizing, normalizing, tempering, grain growth, and recovery.
Full annealing involves long soaking and a slow cool. Spheroidizing is nearly the same as
annealing, but its soaking temperature is lower than annealing. Normalizing is also much like
annealing, but it is soaked at a higher temperature and its cooling rate is not as critical as it is
with annealing. Tempering is soaked at various degrees to relieve stress at different levels.
Recovery is an annealing process that partially restores the original grain structure of the metal
while still preserving the strain hardening that has developed.
A Charpy V-notch test will be performed on each specimen to evaluate toughness. A Charpy Vnotch tester, as displayed in Figure 1, evaluates the amount of energy that is absorbed by the
specimen from a swinging pendulum of weight. The results of the test are measured in Joules (J).

OBJECTIVE

Figure 1 Illustration of a Charpy V-notch

tester.

The objective of this lab is to discover how different heat treating methods affect the toughness
of SAE 1018 cold rolled steel after it has been quenched.

PROCEDURE
The specimen being observed, already having
its v-notch groove cut into itself as shown in
Figure 2, was heated above its upper critical
temperature for fifteen minutes and then
quenched in water. Then the specimen was
given a tempered heat treat at 500F and
soaked for 15 minutes. Next, the specimen was
tested for toughness via Charpy V-notch test.
The specimen will be compared against other
specimens that were heat treated by various
methods.
Figure 2 Specimen with v-notch before heat
treatment.

RESULTS

Series 1

Energy in Joules

350
300
250
200
150
100
50
0

Heat Treat Method

Figure 3 Chart displays amount of energy, measured in Joules, absorbed in each specimen.

Two specimens, full anneal and spheroidize, did not display a reading because their toughness
exceeded the energy output of the Charpy V-notch tester being used for this lab. The maximum
energy exerted from the Charpy V-notch tester being used was 350J.

INTERPRETATION OF RESULTS
From the results displayed in Figure 3, the 500F Tempered specimen can be removed from the
evaluation since its reading does not align with the general trend of the other tempered specimen.
It is much lower than the specimen with a lower temperature temper and the specimen with a
higher temperature temper. Since the maximum energy output of the Charpy V-notch tester is
known, it can be assumed that the two specimens with a reading of zero can absorb more than
350J of energy.
CONCLUSIONS
It can be concluded that a specimen will receive the highest amount of toughness through the
normalized heat treatment. After a quench, if a specimen receives no heat treatment, it can be
assumed that the specimen will be very brittle and have very little toughness.