QUENCH FACTOR ANALYSIS: STEP-BY-STEP

PROCEDURES FOR EXPERIMENTAL DETERMINATION

G.E. Totten and G.M. Webster

Union Carbide Corporation
Tarrytown, NY

ABSTRACT
There have been a number of
procedures
reported
for
the
prediction of physical properties of
aluminum based on cooling rate data.
One of the most common is the
cooling rate calculation procedure
described by Fink and Willey in
their
now-classic
work
on
7075
characterization.
Staley has more
recently
described
the
use
of
"Quench Factor Analysis" (QFA) to
better predict various properties of
aluminum which is the subject of
this paper. A discussion of the
principles of the calculation
and
the experimental procedure used for
QFA determination from cooling curve
data will be provided here.
The
generation of the multiparametric CT
function from cooling curves will
also be discussed.

C.E. Bates

University of Alabama at Birmingham

Birmingham, AL

reported
earlier
by
Willey
illustrating
the
critical
temperature range for the transition
of
pitting
to
intergranular
corrosion for 2024.[3]
Various studies were conducted
after Fink and Willey's work to
determine the relative quench rate
sensitivity to yield
different
properties
for
various
alloys.
Figure 3 illustrates the effect of
cooling rate on tensile strength for
different
aluminum
alloys
and
tempers.[2]

INTRODUCTION
Fink and Willey performed an
extensive study on the effects of
quenching on the strength of 7075-T6
and corrosion behavior 2024-T4.[1]
This was done by constructing Ccurves which were plots illustrating
the times required to precipitate
sufficient alloy content to change
the strength by a certain amount
(7075) or change the corrosion from
pitting to intergranular (2024). The
"critical temperature range", that
temperature range that provided the
highest
precipitation
rates
was
identified.[2] Figure 1 illustrates
Fink and Willey's C-Curve for 7075.
Figure 2 is a C-Curve similar to one

Figure 1 - C-Curves illustrating the

effect of alloy precipitation on
tensile
strength
for
7075-T6
generated
by
Fink
and
Willey.(Reference 1)

A numerical process that has

been developed which fulfills these
objectives is the Quench Factor
Analysis (QFA) procedure which was
developed
by
Evancho
and
Staley.[2,4] The principles of the
QFA calculation and the experimental
procedures
used
for
QFA
determination
from
cooling curve
data will be discussed here.
The
generation of the multiparametric CT
function from cooling curves will
also be provided.
Figure 2 - C-Curve for 2024-T4
illustrating
the
critical
temperature
and
cooling
time
transition
for
pitting
to
intergranular corrosion.

DISCUSSION
Calculation of Quench Factors from
Precipitation Kinetic Data
The properties of aluminum
alloys are dependent on the amount
of alloy precipitation that occurs
during cooling. The rate law for
isothermal
precipitation
kinetics
is:[5]

(1)
where:

is
the
fraction
of
precipitation which has occurred in
time (t) and k is a temperatureindependent constant. The value of k
depends
on
the
degree
of
supersaturation and the rate of
diffusion and is estimated from:[6]
Figure 3 - Tensile strength
function average cooling rate.

as

The average cooling rate in

Figure 3 is determined by dividing
200oF by the time difference, in
seconds, to cool from 750oF to 550oF
which
will
yield
an
"average"
cooling rate in oF/s. An approach
such as this can provide only an
approximation of the actual cooling
process for the quenchant and crosssection size of interest which may,
in fact, be non-linear, interrupted
or delayed quench. Therefore, it is
desirable to utilize a process that
integrates a cooling curve for the
quenching process and cross-section
size being used with a C-curve
(Time-Temperature-Property)
curve
for the specific alloy of interest.

(2)
where:
CT
= critical time required
to
precipitate
a
constant
amount (the locus of the
critical
line
is
the
Ccurve).
k1 = constant which equals the
natural
logarithm
of
the
fraction untransformed (1 fraction defined by the Ccurve).
k2 = constant related to the
reciprocal of the number of
nucleation sites,

k3 = constant related to the

energy required to form a
nucleus,
k4 = constant related to the
solvus temperature,
k5 = constant related to the
activation
energy
for
diffusion,

the C-curve.
As illustrated in Figure 4
[5],
the
quench
factor
()
is
obtained by combining the cooling
curve for the quenching process with
the C-curve and the value for is
obtained by:[2]

R = 8.3143 J.K-1.mol-1

(5)

T = temperature in oK.
From these relationships, it
is possible to redefine the equation
for
the
amount
of
solute
precipitated during the quench ()
which can be calculated :[2]

(3)
Cahn
has
shown
that
the
transformation
kinetics
for nonisothermal conditions, such as those
that would be present during a
typical quenching process, may be
described by: [6,7]

(4)

Figure 4 - Determination of quench

factor () by the combination of a
quenchant cooling curve and a Ccurve.
A graphical representation of
a quench factor determined earlier
by
Kim,
Hoff
and
Gaskell
is
illustrated in Figure 6.[5] The
quench factor shown is the area
projected on to the 1/CT - 1 plane.

where:
CT = critical time from the Ccurve,
t = time from the cooling
curve,
t0 = time at the start of the
quench,
tf = time at the finish of the
quench,
= measure of the amount
transformed (quench factor).
When =1, the fraction transformed
equals the fraction represented by

Figure 5 - Graphical representation

of the quench factor as the area of

the "cliff" projected on to the 1/CTt plane [5].
Experimental Determination of Quench
Factors
Figure
6
illustrates
the
superposition of a cooling curve on
a
C-curve.[8]
Experimentally,
cooling curves are generated by
acquiring time-temperature data over
finite time steps (ti) which is
determined by the data acquisition
rate.
The
average
temperature
between each time step interval is
then calculated. The CT value is then
calculated
for
each
average
temperature
using
the
above
equation.
The ratio of the time
step
length
used
for
data
acquisition, (ti) is divided by the
CT value at that temperature to
provide
an
"incremental
quench
factor" (q).[8]

(6)

(7)
Effect of Time Step (t) Selection
In order to determine the
effect of the size of the time step
on the quench factor calculation,
the quench factors for 7075-T73
quenched in 100oF (38oC) water at 50
ft/min (0.25 m/s) was studied.
The results of this study are
shown in Table 1. These data show
that time step changes in the range
of 0.1 to 0.4 seconds caused no
appreciable change in the calculated
quench factor.
However, time step
variations
between
0.5
to
0.8
seconds caused considerable scatter
in the calculated quench factor (Q).
Excessively long time steps may
result in an inadequate number of
data points to properly calculate
transition in the critical portion
(knee)
of
the
C-curve.
It
is
suggested
that
the
time
step
interval should be selected such
that the average temperature drop is
not greater than 75oF (25oC) over the
critical cooling range for the alloy
of interest.
Table 1
Effect of Time Step Magnitude on
Quench Factor Calculation

Property Calculation

Figure 6 - Schematic illustration of

the experimental method used for
calculating a quench factor.
To obtain the overall quench
factor, Q (or in the above
equation), the incremental quench
factor
values
are
summed
progressively as the part is cooled
through
the
precipitation range,
normally about 800-300oF (425 150oC) as shown in Figure 5.[8]

The tensile strength of the

alloy after proper aging can be
predicted from the quench factor Q:[2]

(8)
where:

y = predicted yield strength,

max = yield strength after an
infinite quench (and aging
cycle),
e = base of the natural
logarithm,

K1 = ln (0.995) = -0.00501
Q = quench factor
The
relationship
between
quench factor and yield strength for
7075-T73 is shown in Figure 7.[8]

Figure
7
Yield
strength
of
aluminum 7075-T73 as a function of
quench factor of the material.
Low values of Q are associated
with high quench rates, minimum
precipitation
during
cooling and
high yield strengths. Conversely,
higher Q-values are obtained with
slower
quench
rates
and
are
associated
with
lower
strength
values.

corrosion,
stress
exfoliation.

corrosion

or

Experimental Apparatus
The quench factor provided by
a
particular
quenchant
can
be
determined
experimentally
using
parts or probes instrumented with
thermocouples
and
a
testing
apparatus in which the quenchant
concentration,
flow
rate,
and
temperature can be controlled. In
principle, any quenchant bath could
be used, including the commercial
bath used in practice. Figure 8
illustrates one system that has
performed
well
in
the
laboratory.[10]
However,
it
is
important to note that different
agitation
systems
will
yield
different results due to differences
in the directionality and turbulence
of fluid flow.
An illustration of a bar and
sheet probe used for laboratory
testing is provided in Figures 8 and
9 respectively.[10] A computerized
data acquisition system is used to
collect
and
store
the
timetemperature
data
from
the
instrumented probes or parts during
quenching.[11]

An alloy with a low rate of

precipitation will produce a lower
quench factor (Q) than an alloy with
a high precipitation rate at the
same cooling rate. Quench factors
calculated
for
different
alloys
might be different even if similar
section sizes are cooled in the same
quenchant, because quench factors
take into account individual alloy
precipitation kinetics by means of
the equation describing the C-curve
(CT function) for each alloy.
Solute
elements
are
precipitated during cooling from the
solution
treating
temperature at
"high" Q-values.
As a consequence,
an improperly quenched alloy may not
properly harden during aging, and it
may be susceptible to intergranular

Figure
8
Illustration
of
a
laboratory quench bath capable of
providing a controlled uniform flow

rate
at
a
temperature.

reasonable

constant

quench factor calculation is the

unavailability
of
C-curves
for
performing
QFA
calculations.
Although it is true that there is
not extensive data, C-curves for
many
of
the
more
commonly
encountered
alloys
have
been
published. Some of the C-curves that
have been reported to data are
illustrated in Figures 11-15.

Figure 9 - The construction of a 25

mm round bar probe.

Figure 11 - C-Curve for 7075-T6

yield strength. (Reference 3).

Figure 10 - Illustration of a sheet

probe.
The part or probe is solution
heat
treated
at
the
proper
temperature
for
the
alloy
and
quenched into the bath containing
the quenchant being evaluated at the
desired concentration and flow rate.
The cooling curves are recorded and
the quench factors calculated as
described above.
C-Curve Availability
There are a number of problems
that
have
prevented
widespread
acceptance of quench factor analysis
procedures
by
the
general
heat
treating industry. One of the most
often encountered criticisms of the

Figure 12 - C-curves for 2024-T851,

7075-T6
and
7075-T76
aluminum
alloys. (Reference 9)

Figure 13 (Reference 7)

C-Curve

for

6351-T6.
Table 2

Coefficients for Calculating Quench Factors at 99.5%

of Attainable Yield Strength

in quench factor calculations.[8,9].

These values are summarized in Table
2.
C-Curve Parameterization

Figure 14 - C-Curves for 7075, 2017,

6061 and 6063. (Reference 12).

The equation of the C-curve

was shown previously. However most
of the constants for these equations
are not available which will permit
the calculation of the CT function.
Instead,
the
CT
function
is
calculated by fitting the equation
shown (Equation 2) to the C-curve
using non-linear regression analysis
and solving for the k2-k5 values
until minimum error is obtained by a
self-directing
optimization
process.[13] In this way, a CT
function can be written for any
available C-curve.
CONCLUSIONS

Figure 15 - C-Curves for 7075-T6 and

7050-T73 (Reference 2)
C-curves have been reported
for other alloys but are not shown
here.
These include: 2219-T87,
2024-T851,
and
2024-T351.[7]
Unfortunately,
no
C-curves
for
quench hardenable aluminum casting
alloys have been published.
Bates has summarized the CT
constants for a limited number of
alloys and tempers which can be used

In this paper, the traditional

approach
to
calculating
average
cooling rates by the Fink and Willey
procedure and the deficiencies of
this procedure was discussed. An
alternative procedure, Quench Factor
Analysis, developed by Evancho and
Staley,
which
provides
an
integration of the time-temperatureproperty (C-curve) for the desired
aluminum alloy and the cooling curve
shape in the critical temperature
region was provided. Experimental
procedures for the necessary cooling
curve
data
acquisition
and
subsequent calculation procedure was
also provided. The more common Ccurves that have been published were
shown.
A
description
of
a
multiparametric
non-linear
regression
analysis
procedure to
calculate the equation of the Ccurve, CT function, was briefly

discussed. With this information, it

is possible for the reader to
perform QFA analysis on the more
commonly available wrought aluminum
alloys that may be encountered.
Unfortunately similar data is not
available for cast aluminum alloys,
although the approach is equally
applicable. QFA procedures have been
utilized by numerous workers in the
field to solve various problems
encompassing a wide variety of both
spray
and
immersion
quenching
procedures. [15-19]
REFERENCES
1. W.L. Fink and L.A. Willey,
"Quenching of 75S Aluminum Alloy",
Trans. AIME, 1948, Vol. 175, p. 414427.
2. J.W. Evancho and J.T. Staley,
"Kinetics
of
Precipitation
in
Aluminum Alloys During Continuous
Cooling",Metallurgical Transactions,
1974, Vol. 5, January, p. 43-47.
3.
"Quench
Factor
Analysis"
in
Aluminum
Properties
and Physical
Metallurgy, Ed. by J.E. Hatch, 1984,
ASM International, Materials Park,
OH, p. 159-164.
4. J.T. Staley, "Modeling Quenching
of
Precipitation
Strengthened
Alloys: Application to an AluminumCopper-Lithium Alloy", Ph.D. Thesis,
Drexel University, 1989.
5. J-S. Kim, R.C. Hoff and D.R.
Gaskell, "A Quench Factor Analysis
of the Influence of Water Spray
Quenching on the Age-Hardenability
of Aluminum Alloys", in Materials
Processing in the Computer Age, Ed.
by R. Voller, M.S. Stachowicz and
B.G. Thomas, 1991, The Minerals,
Metals and Materials Society, p.
203-221.

Properties and Minimize Distortion

in
Aluminum-Alloy
Parts",
Heat
Treat. of Metals, 1988, No. 4, p.
89-97.
9. C.E. Bates, "Quench Optimization
for
Aluminum
Alloys",
AFS
Transactions, 1994, 93-25, p. 10451054.
10. G.E. Totten, C.E. Bates and L.M.
Jarvis, "Cooling Curve and Quench
Factor Characterization of 2024 and
7075 Aluminum Bar Stock Quenched in
Type I Polymer Quenchants", in Heat
Treating - Proceedings of the 16th
Conference, Ed. by J.L. Dossett and
R.E.
Luetje,
1996,
ASM
International, Materials Park, OH,
p. 221-229.
11. G.M. Webster and G.E. Totten,
"Cooling Curve Analysis - Data
Acquisition", in Heat Treating Proceedings of the 16th Conference,
Ed. by J.L. Dossett and R.E. Luetje,
1996, ASM International, Materials
Park, OH, p. 427-434.
12. T. Sheppard, "Press Quenching of
Aluminum Alloys", Materials Science
and Technology, 1988, Vol. 4, July,
p. 635-643.
13. K.B. Orzak, "The Programs CT and
Quench
for
Calculating
CT-Curve
Parameters and Quench Factors for
Aluminum
Alloys,
Unpublished
Report. For a copy, contact Dr.
George E. Totten, Union Carbide
Corporation, 777 Old Saw Mill River
Road, Tarrytown, NY 10591.
14. P. Archambault, J.C. Chevrier,
G. Beck and J. Bauvaist, Heat
Treatment '76, Proceed. of 16th
International
Heat
Treatment
Conference, 1981, Metals Society
(London), p. 105-109.

6. J.W. Cahn, "The Kinetics of Grain

Boundary Nucleated Reactions", Acta
Met., 1956, Vol. 4, p. 449-459.

15. P. Archambault, J.C. Chevrier

and G. Beck, "A Contribution to the
Optimization
of
the
7075
Heat
Treatment", Materials Science and
Engineering, 1980, Vol. 43, p. 1-6.

7. J.T.
Analysis
Materials
1987, Vol.

Staley, "Quench Factor

of
Aluminum
Alloys",
Science and Technology,
3, November, p. 923-935.

16. C.E. Bates, T. Landig, and G.

Seitanakis, "Quench Factor Analysis:
A Powerful Tool Comes of Age", Heat
Treating, 1985, December, p. 13-17.

8. C.E. Bates and G.E. Totten,

"Procedure
for
Quenching
Media
Selection
to
Maximize
Tensile

17. P. Archambault, F. Moreaux and

G. Beck, "Decomposition of the Solid
Solution During the Quench Cooling

of 7075 Alloy. Cooling Rate and CCurves", in Aluminum Technology,

1986, The Institute of Metals,
(London), p. 408-413.

18. S. Tsuchida, H. Yoshida ans S.

Hirano, "Heat Treatment of Aluminum
Alloys", Sumitomo Light Met. Tech.
Rep., 1990, Vol. 31(2), p. 28-45.
19. J.T. Staley, "Using Simple
Kinetic Equations in Heat Treating
Aluminum", Technical Bulletin, Alcoa
Laboratories,
Alcoa
Technical
Center, Alcoa Center, PA.