Industrial foundries manufacture formidable products, mammoth components and intricate parts that go into service in the harshest applications. The thing is, we can't just melt iron and fill a cavity. The cooled metal part would hold its form and even look tough enough to handle the stresses of its coming role, but this isn't the way of steel and cast iron.
In adding chemistry to heat, we gain a powerful partnership, a fine means of blending two contrasting metal treatment techniques. Heat, obviously, changes the mechanical characteristics of a processed metal. On the other hand, chemical solutions support and even enhance thermal treatment cycles by providing a secondary transformative pathway. The nitriding process is an eloquent example of process-blending alchemy, an instance where surface hardening pairs chemical compounds with heat to surface harden steel parts.
Oxidation is a chemical reaction that takes place between oxygen molecules and the floating ring of electrons that orbit another element. Rusting iron is an out of control example of oxidation, a reaction that weakens the mechanical strength of the metal, and will actually see the material waste away unless it's treated or coated in a special finish.
A capacity for uniformly distributing heat is a headlining feature for industrial-grade furnaces. A series of highly consistent geometrical profiles are set to enter this thermally active chamber. They roll into the furnace for carefully timed heating and cooling procedures, exiting after passing through a quenching stage. Critical furnace parameters must be observed, but they're difficult to maintain when pollutants are abroad.
A number of contrasting heat treatment processes exist. They use atmospheric ovens and special electric blowers to uniformly heat a metal part and optimize targeted mechanical characteristics.