A New Era in Swiss History: Supporting the Invasion

4.1. A Tour in Switzerland (1798): Writing as a Political Act

4.1.1. A New Era in Swiss History: Supporting the Invasion

GEAR MATERIALS can be broadly classi-ﬁed into two groups: nonmetallic and metallic materials. Nonmetallics are the plastics, both thermoplastic and thermosetting, used for gear-ing. These materials are described in Chapter 4,

“Plastics.” Metallic gear materials can be fur-ther subdivided into ferrous, or iron-base alloys, and nonferrous alloys. The most commonly used ferrous alloys are the wrought surface-hardening and through-surface-hardening carbon and alloy steels. In fact, these steels are the most widely used of all gear materials and will be the emphasis of this chapter. Other ferrous alloys used for gears are cast irons, cast steels, powder metallurgy (P/M) irons and steels, stainless steels, tool steels, and maraging steels.

Although a number of nonferrous alloys have been used for gears, by far the most commonly employed are copper-base alloys. Die cast alu-minum-, zinc-, and magnesium-base alloys are also sometimes used. More recently titanium alloy Ti-6Al-4V has been used in some special-ized applications.

Wrought Gear Steels

Wrought steel is the generic term applied to carbon and alloy steels which are mechanically worked into form for speciﬁc applications. The standard wrought steel forms are round bar stock, ﬂat stock, and forgings. Forgings reduce machining time and are available in a wide range of sizes and grades.

In general, there are two types of wrought gear steels: surface-hardening and through-hardening grades. The surface-hardened steels are hardened to a relatively thin case depth and include carburizing, nitriding, and carbonitrid-ing steels. Surface-hardencarbonitrid-ing steels include plain carbon and alloy steels with carbon

con-tent generally not exceeding 0.25% C. Table 1 lists compositions of surface-hardening steels.

Through-hardening steels may be compara-tively shallow hardening or deep hardening, depending on their chemical composition and method of hardening. Through-hardening steels include plain carbon and alloy steels with car-bon content ranging from 0.30 to approximately 0.55% C. Table 2 lists the compositions of through-hardening gear steels. Table 3 lists the mechanical properties of both surface- and through-hardening steels in various conditions.

The steels selected for gear applications must satisfy two basic sets of requirements that are not always compatible—those involving fabri-cation and processing and those involving ser-vice. Fabrication and processing requirements include machinability, forgeability, and re-sponse to heat treatment as it affects fabrication and processing. Service requirements are re-lated to the ability of the gear to perform satis-factorily under the conditions of loading for which it was designed and thus encompass all mechanical-property requirements, including fatigue strength, response to heat treatment, and resistance to wear.

Because resistance to fatigue failure is partly dependent upon the cleanness of the steel and upon the nature of allowable inclusions, melting practice may also be a factor in steel selection and may warrant selection of a steel produced by vacuum induction melting followed by vac-uum arc remelting (VIM/VAR) or by elec-troslag reﬁning. The mill form from which a steel gear is machined is another factor that may effect its performance. Many heavy-duty steel gears are machined from forged blanks that have been processed to provide favorable grain ﬂow consistent with load pattern rather than being machined from blanks cut from mill-rolled bar.

Table 1 Chemical compositions of carburizing steels

The carburizing grades commonly used for gears are described in text.

Composition, %

Steel C Mn Ni Cr Mo Other

Carbon steels

1010 0.08–0.13 0.30–0.60 . . . . . . . . . (a), (b)

1015 0.13–0.18 0.30–0.60 . . . . . . . . . (a), (b)

1018 0.15–0.20 0.60–0.90 . . . . . . . . . (a), (b)

1019 0.15–0.20 0.70–1.00 . . . . . . . . . (a), (b)

1020 0.18–0.23 0.30–0.60 . . . . . . . . . (a), (b)

1021 0.18–0.23 0.60–0.90 . . . . . . . . . (a), (b)

1022 0.18–0.23 0.70–1.00 . . . . . . . . . (a), (b)

1025 0.22–0.28 0.30–0.60 . . . . . . . . . (a), (b)

1524 0.19–0.25 1.35–1.65 . . . . . . . . . (a), (b)

1527 0.22–0.29 1.20–1.50 . . . . . . . . . (a), (b)

Resulfurized steels

1117 0.14–0.20 1.00–1.30 . . . . . . . . . 0.08–0.13 S

1118 0.14–0.20 1.30–1.60 . . . . . . . . . 0.08–0.13 S

Alloy steels

3310 0.08–0.13 0.45–0.60 3.25–3.75 1.40–1.75 . . . (b), (c)

4023 0.20–0.25 0.70–0.90 . . . . . . 0.20–0.30 (b), (c)

4027 0.25–0.30 0.70–0.90 . . . . . . 0.20–0.30 (b), (c)

4118 0.18–0.23 0.70–0.90 . . . 0.40–0.60 0.08–0.15 (b), (c)

4320 0.17–0.22 0.45–0.65 1.65–2.00 0.40–0.60 0.20–0.30 (b), (c)

4615 0.13–0.18 0.45–0.65 1.65–2.00 . . . 0.20–0.30 (b), (c)

4620 0.17–0.22 0.45–0.65 1.65–2.00 . . . 0.20–0.30 (b), (c)

4815 0.13–0.18 0.40–0.60 3.25–3.75 . . . 0.20–0.30 (b), (c)

4820 0.18–0.23 0.50–0.70 3.25–3.75 . . . 0.20–0.30 (b), (c)

5120 0.17–0.22 0.70–0.90 . . . 0.70–0.90 . . . (b), (c)

5130 0.28–0.33 0.70–0.90 . . . 0.80–1.10 . . . (b), (c)

8617 0.15–0.20 0.70–0.90 0.40–0.70 0.40–0.60 0.15–0.25 (b), (c)

8620 0.18–0.23 0.70–0.90 0.40–0.70 0.40–0.60 0.15–0.25 (b), (c)

8720 0.18–0.23 0.70–0.90 0.40–0.70 0.40–0.60 0.20–0.30 (b), (c)

8822 0.20–0.25 0.75–1.00 0.40–0.70 0.40–0.60 0.30–0.40 (b), (c)

9310 0.08–0.13 0.45–0.65 3.00–3.50 1.00–1.40 0.08–0.15 (b), (c)

Special alloys

CBS-600 0.16–0.22 0.40–0.70 . . . 1.25–1.65 0.90–1.10 0.90–1.25 Si

CBS-1000M 0.10–0.16 0.40–0.60 2.75–3.25 0.90–1.20 4.00–5.00 0.40–0.60 Si

0.15–0.25 V

Pyrowear Alloy 53 0.10 0.35 2.00 1.00 3.25 1.00 Si, 2.00 Cu, 0.10 V

(a) 0.04 P max, 0.05 S max. (b) 0.15–0.35 Si. (c) 0.035 P max, 0.04 S max

Surface-Hardening Steels

General Properties. Carburizing or nitrid-ing grades of steel are usually specified where maximum wear resistance is required for bear-ing surfaces. Carburized case-hardened gears are best suited for heavy-duty service, for exam-ple, transmission gears, and offer high resis-tance to wear, pitting, and fatigue. Surfaces must be sufficiently hard to resist wear and of sufficient depth to prevent case crushing. A rough rule for case depth is that it shall not exceed one-sixth of the base thickness of the tooth. Figure 1 shows the typical structure of a case-hardened gear steel.

A case-hardened gear provides maximum sur-face hardness and wear resistance and at the same time provides interior toughness to resist shock.

In general, case-hardened gears can withstand higher loads than through-hardened gears, al-though the latter are quieter and less expensive because of the simpler heat treatment required (Ref 1).

Selection Factors. The following factors must be considered when selecting a case-hardened gear (Ref 1):

•

High tooth pressures will crack a thin case.

•

Too soft a core will not provide proper back-ing for a hard case.

Table 2 Chemical compositions of through-hardening gear steels

Composition, %

Steel C Mn Ni Cr Mo Other

Carbon steels

1035 0.32–0.38 0.60–0.90 . . . . . . . . . (a)(b)

1040 0.37–0.44 0.60–0.90 . . . . . . . . . (a)(b)

1045 0.43–0.50 0.60–0.90 . . . . . . . . . (a)(b)

1050

Free-cutting (resulfurized) carbon steels

1137 0.32–0.39 1.35–1.65 . . . . . . . . . 0.08–0.13 S

1141 0.37–0.45 1.35–1.65 . . . . . . . . . 0.08–0.13 S

1144 0.40–0.48 1.35–1.65 . . . . . . . . . 0.24–0.33 S

Alloy steels

1340 0.38–0.43 1.60–1.90 . . . . . . . . . (c)(d)

3140 0.38–0.43 0.70–0.90 1.10–1.40 0.55–0.75 . . . (c)(d)

4042 0.40–0.45 0.70–0.90 . . . . . . 0.20–0.40 (c)(d)

(c)(d)

4130 0.28–0.33 0.40–0.60 . . . 0.80–1.10 0.15–0.25

4140 0.38–0.43 0.75–1.00 . . . 0.80–1.10 0.15–0.25 (c)(d)

4142 0.40–0.45 0.75–1.00 . . . 0.80–1.10 0.15–0.25 (c)(d)

4145 0.41–0.48 0.75–1.00 . . . 0.80–1.10 0.15–0.25 (c)(d)

4150 0.48–0.53 0.75–1.00 . . . 0.80–1.10 0.15–0.25 (c)(d)

4340 0.38–0.43 0.60–0.80 1.65–2.00 0.70–0.90 0.20–0.30 (c)(d)

4350 0.48–0.53 0.60–0.80 1.65–2.00 0.70–0.90 0.20–0.30 (c)(d)

5140 0.38–0.43 0.70–0.90 . . . 0.70–0.90 . . . (c)(d)

6145 0.41–0.48 0.70–0.90 . . . 0.80–1.10 . . . (c)(d) 0.15 V min

8640 0.38–0.43 0.75–1.00 0.40–0.70 0.40–0.60 0.15–0.25 (c)(d)

8740 0.38–0.43 0.75–1.00 0.40–0.70 0.40–0.60 0.20–0.30 (c)(d)

9840 0.38–0.43 0.70–0.90 0.85–1.15 0.70–0.90 0.08–0.15 (c)(d)

(a) 0.04 P max, 0.05 S max. (b) 0.10–0.60 Si. (c) 0.035 P max, 0.04 S max (d) 0.15–0.35 Si

•

Compressive stresses in the case improve fatigue durability, and a high case hardness increases wear resistance.

•

If the ratio of case depth to core thickness is too small, excessive stresses in subsurface layers can produce poor fatigue life.

•

Residual tensile stresses are highest with low core hardness and increase with increas-ing case depth. These stresses can be relieved by tempering.

Grain size variations have an important effect on core properties. These variations are inﬂu-enced by the type of steel and the method of heat treatment used subsequent to carburizing. Sec-tion thickness also inﬂuences core properties.

A tough tooth core may not be required in applications where a gear will not be subjected to impact loading. In these applications, core properties are relatively unimportant, provided the core is sufﬁciently hard to support the case.

Considering the case alone, it is important that the surface resist wear and fatigue bending, because bending stresses vary from a maximum at the surface to zero near the tooth center.

Carburizing Steels. Carburizing is a very important commercial heat-treating operation that is used to modify the surface chemistry of components manufactured from ferrous alloys by the processes of carbon absorption and diffu-sion. The process is carried out at a temperature sufﬁcient to render the steel austenitic (gener-ally between 850 and 950 °C, or 1560 and 1740

°F), followed by quenching and tempering to form a high-carbon martensitic structure. The increase in carbon content of a carburized sur-face layer results in a substantial change in the properties of the effected volume of material.

For example, the carburized case will be harder, will be more resistant to abrasive wear, and will exhibit improved fatigue properties compared with the uneffected core. These variations in properties are quite useful in applications where a hard, wear-resistant surface is needed and where a softer, more ductile core is required to prevent catastrophic failure of the component.

Carburizing methods include:

•

Gas carburizing

•

Vacuum carburizing

Table 3 Mechanical properties of selected gear steels

Tensile strength Yield strength

Steel Condition MPa ksi MPa ksi

Carbon steel bar(a)

1015 Hot rolled 345 50 190 27.5 28 50 101

Cold drawn 385 56 325 47 18 40 111

1018 Hot rolled 400 58 220 32 25 50 116

Cold drawn 440 64 370 54 15 40 126

1020 Hot rolled 380 55 205 30 25 50 111

Cold drawn 420 61 350 51 15 40 121

1022 Hot rolled 425 62 235 34 23 47 121

Cold drawn 475 69 400 58 15 40 137

1025 Hot rolled 400 58 220 32 25 50 116

Cold drawn 440 64 370 54 15 40 126

1040 Hot rolled 525 76 290 42 18 40 149

Cold drawn 585 85 490 71 12 35 170

1045 Hot rolled 565 82 310 45 16 40 163

Cold drawn 625 91 530 77 12 35 179

Annealed, cold drawn 585 85 505 73 12 45 170

Spheroidized annealed, cold drawn 650 94 500 72.5 10 40 192

1117 Hot rolled 425 62 235 34 23 47 121

Cold drawn 475 69 400 58 15 40 137

1118 Hot rolled 450 65 250 36 23 47 131

Cold drawn 495 72 420 61 15 40 143

Low-alloy steels(b)

4130 Normalized at 870 °C (1600 °F) 670 97 435 63 25.5 59.5 197

Annealed at 865 °C (1585 °F) 560 81 460 67 21.5 59.6 217

Water quenched from 855 °C (1575 °F) and tempered at 540 °C (1000 °F)

1040 151 979 142 18.1 63.9 302

4140 Normalized at 870 °C (1600 °F) 1020 148 655 95 17.7 46.8 302

Annealed at 815 °C (1500 °F) 655 95 915 60 25.7 56.9 197

Water quenched from 845 °C (1550 °F) and tempered at 540 °C (1000 °F)

1075 156 986 143 15.5 56.9 311

4150 Normalized at 870 °C (1600 °F) 1160 168 731 106 11.7 30.8 321

Annealed at 830 °C (1525 °F) 731 106 380 55 20.2 40.2 197

Oil quenched from 830 °C (1525 °F) and tempered at 540 °C (1000 °F)

1310 190 1215 176 13.5 47.2 375

4340 Normalized at 870 °C (1600 °F) 1282 186 862 125 12.2 36.3 363

Annealed at 810 °C (1490 °F) 745 108 470 68 22.0 50.0 217

Oil quenched from 800 °C (1475 °F) and tempered at 540 °C (1000 °F)

1207 175 1145 166 14.2 45.9 352

5140 Normalized at 870 °C (1600 °F) 793 115 470 68 22.7 59.2 229

Annealed at 830 °C (1525 °F) 570 83 290 42 28.6 57.3 167

Oil quenched from 845 °C (1550 °F) and tempered at 540 °C (1000 °F)

972 141 841 122 18.5 58.9 293

8620 Normalized at 915 °C (1675 °F) 635 92 360 52 26.3 59.7 183

Annealed at 870 °C (1600 °F) 540 78 385 56 31.3 62.1 149

8630 Normalized at 870 °C (1600 °F) 650 94 425 62 23.5 53.5 187

Annealed at 845 °C (1550 °F) 565 82 370 54 29.0 58.9 156

Water quenched from 845 °C (1550 °F) and tempered at 540 °C (1000 °F)

931 135 850 123 18.7 59.6 269

8740 Normalized at 870 °C (1600 °F) 931 135 605 88 16.0 47.9 269

Annealed at 815 °C (1500 °F) 696 101 415 60 22.2 46.4 201

Oil quenched from 830 °C (1525 °F) and tempered at 540 °C (1000 °F)

1225 178 1130 164 16.0 53.0 352

9310 Normalized at 890 °C (1630 °F) 910 132 570 83 18.8 58.1 269 HRB

Annealed at 845 °C (1550 °F) 820 119 450 65 17.3 42.1 241 HRB

Aged sheet 6 mm (0.25 in.) 2169 315 2135 310 7.7 35 55.1 HRC

(a) All values are estimated minimum values; type 1100 series steels are rated on the basis of 0.10% max Si or coarse-grain melting practice; the mechanical proper-ties shown are expected minimums for the sizes ranging from 19 to 31.8 mm (0.75 to 1.25 in.). (b) Most data are for 25 mm (1 in.) diam bar.

Hardness, HB Reduction in area, % Elongation,

in 50 mm, %

•

Plasma carburizing

•

Salt bath carburizing

•

Pack carburizing

These methods introduce carbon by the use of gas (atmospheric-gas, plasma, and vacuum

car-burizing), liquids (salt bath carcar-burizing), or solid compounds (pack carburizing). All of these methods have advantages and limitations, but gas carburizing is used most often for large-scale production because it can be accurately controlled and involves a minimum of special

Fig. 1 Uniform case depth on a 40-tooth gear made from Fe-0.16C-0.6Mn-0.37Si-1.65Cr-3.65Ni steel that was pro-duced by ion carburizing

handling. More detailed information on various carburizing methods can be found in Chapter 9,

“Carburizing.”

The core carbon content of carburized gears is usually within the range of 0.10 to 0.25%. A lower carbon content is usually used to obtain maximum ductility, and a higher carbon content is used to obtain maximum core strength. Some representative SAE-AISI carburizing steels used for gears include:

•

Plain carbon steels: 1015, 1018, 1020, 1022, and 1025

•

Free-machining steels: 1117 and 1118

•

Alloy steels: 4020, 4026, 4118, 4320, 4620, 4820, 5120, 8620, 8720, and 9310

Many other standard (SAE-AISI) and propri-etary carburizing steels are also available.

The nickel-bearing carburizing steels are used chieﬂy where exceptional core toughness com-bined with the highest degree of wear resistance and greatest surface compressive strength is required. These steels include the nickel-molyb-denum steels (4600 and 4800 series) and the nickel-chromium-molybdenum steels (4300, 8600, 8700, and 9300 series). The carbon-molybdenum steels (4000 series) are used where exceptional toughness and good resistance to temper embrittlement are required.

Another advantage of the more highly alloyed steels is the ability of heavy sections to harden more completely. This greater harden-ability promotes better core strength properties

than can be achieved with shallow hardening steels quenched in the same size section.

Nitriding Steels. Nitriding is a surface-hardening heat treatment that introduces nitro-gen into the surface of steel at a temperature range of 500 to 550 °C (930 to 1020 °F) while it is in the ferritic condition. Thus, nitriding is sim-ilar to carburizing in that surface composition is altered, but different in that nitrogen is added into ferrite instead of austenite. Because nitrid-ing does not involve heatnitrid-ing into the austenite phase ﬁeld and a subsequent quench to form martensite, nitriding can be accomplished with a minimum of distortion and with excellent dimensional control. Process methods for nitrid-ing include gas, liquid (salt bath), and plasma (ion) nitriding. Details on these processes can be found in Chapter 10, “Nitriding.”

Nitriding steels can be used in many gear applications where a hard, wear-resistant case, good fatigue strength, low notch sensitivity, and some degree of corrosion resistance are desired.

In addition, nitriding steels make it possible to surface harden the teeth of large gears having thin sections that might be impractical to car-burize and quench.

Nitrided gears are relatively free from wear up to the load at which surface failure occurs, but at this load they become badly crushed and pitted. Thus, nitrided gears are generally not suitable for applications where overloads are likely to be encountered.

Nitrided steels are generally medium-carbon (quenched-and-tempered) steels that contain strong nitride-forming elements such as alu-minum, chromium, vanadium, and molybde-num. The most signiﬁcant hardening is achieved with a class of alloy steels (Nitralloy steels as described below) that contain about 1% Al.

When these steels are nitrided, the aluminum forms AIN particles, which strain the ferrite lat-tice and create strengthening dislocations.

Table 4 lists chemical compositions of Nitral-loy gear steels. NitralNitral-loy N, a nickel-bearing (3.5% Ni) nitriding steel, is a precipitation-hardening alloy that attains a core strength and hardness after nitriding that are considerably in excess of its original properties. Both Nitralloy N and Nitralloy 135M are outstanding for heavy-duty gears that are highly stressed. Little change in tensile strength of nitriding steels occurs if the tempering temperature used for treating the core is at or above the nitriding temperature. How-ever, because of the increased hardness of the case, the elongation, ductility, and impact

strength of both alloys are considerably reduced after tempering, though not to the same extent;

Nitralloy N develops a tougher and softer sur-face and a stronger core than Nitralloy 135M.

Any of the SAE-AISI steels that contain nitride-forming elements, such as chromium, vanadium, or molybdenum, can also be nitrided.

The steels most commonly nitrided are 4140, 4340, 6140, and 8740. In some applications, the 0.50% C grades are also used.

Through-Hardening Steels

By virtue of their higher carbon content, through-hardening steel gears possess greater core strength than carburized gears. They are not, however, as ductile or as resistant to surface compressive stresses and wear as case-hardened gears. Hardness of gear surfaces may vary from 300 to 575 HB. Through-hardened steels may also be effectively surface hardened by induc-tion heating or by ﬂame hardening.

Typical of the relatively shallow-hardening carbon steel gear materials are SAE-AISI types 1035, 1040, 1045, 1050, 1137, 1141, 1144, and 1340. These steels are water-hardening, but not deep-hardening types that are suitable for gears requiring only a moderate degree of strength and impact resistance.

In general, the more highly alloyed through-hardening steels harden more completely when quenched in heavy sections. This greater harden-ability provides greater strength than can be attained with shallow-hardening steels quenched in the same size section.

Typical of the low-alloy, medium-to-deep hardening gear materials are (in order of increas-ing hardenability): 4042, 5140, 8640, 3140, 4140, 8740, 6145, 9840, and 4340. These steels, as well as many other alloy steels with the proper hardenability characteristics and a carbon con-tent of 0.35 to 0.50%, are suitable for gears requiring medium-to-high wear resistance and

high load-carrying capacity. Other standard (SAE-AISI) and proprietary through-hardening steels are also available.

When selecting a through-hardening steel, it should be considered that a higher carbon and alloy content is accompanied by greater strength and hardness (but lower ductility) of the surface and the core. Fully hardened and tempered medium-carbon alloy steels possess an excellent combination of strength and tough-ness at room temperature and at lower tempera-tures. However, toughness can be substantially decreased by temper embrittlement by slow cooling through the temperature range of 450 to 540 °C (850 to 1000 °F), or by holding or tem-pering in this range. Because of their good hard-enability and immunity to temper brittleness, molybdenum steels have been widely used for gears requiring good toughness at room and low temperatures.

Gear Steel Requirements

Some of the more important requirements for gear steels are their:

•

Processing characteristics (for example, hardenability and machinability)

•

Response to heat treatment. This subject is addressed in Chapters 8 through 12 which cover through-hardening, carburizing, ni-triding, carbonini-triding, and induction and ﬂame hardening, respectively.

•

Resistance to tooth bending fatigue—both low-cycle (≤10⁵cycles to failure) and high-cycle (>10⁵ cycles to failure) fatigue. Be-cause carburized steels for high-performance gear applications are subjected to cyclic loading, this is one of the most important properties or measure of gear performance.

The section on “Bending Fatigue Strength of Carburized Steels” deals with this subject in detail.

Table 4 Nominal chemical compositions for aluminum-containing low-alloy steels commonly gas nitrided

Steel Composition, %

SAE AMS Nitralloy C Mn Si Cr Ni Mo Al Se

. . . . . . G 0.35 0.55 0.30 1.2 . . . 0.20 1.0 . . .

7140 6470 135M 0.42 0.55 0.30 1.6 . . . 0.38 1.0 . . .

. . . 6475 N 0.24 0.55 0.30 1.15 3.5 0.25 1.0 . . .

. . . . . . EZ 0.35 0.80 0.30 1.25 . . . 0.20 1.0 0.20

•

Resistance to surface-contact (pitting) fatigue. This subject is addressed in Chapter 2, “Gear Tribology and Lubrication.”

•

Resistance to rolling contact fatigue

•

Resistance to wear. This subject is brieﬂy discussed in this chapter, but more detailed information on adhesive wear, abrasive wear, and scufﬁng of gears can be found in Chapter 2.

•

Their hot hardness

•

Their bending strength and bend ductility

•

Their toughness, both impact toughness and fracture toughness

Each of these will be described in subsequent sections.

Processing

Characteristics of Gear Steels

Hardenability refers to the ability of a steel to be transformed partially or completely from austenite to martensite at a given depth when cooled under prescribed conditions. This deﬁni-tion reﬂects the empirical nature of steel hard-enability, and, as discussed in Ref 2, many types of experiments have been devised to measure or describe the hardenability of various kinds of steel.

Martensite is the microstructure usually desired in quenched carbon and low-alloy steels.

The cooling rate in a quenched part must be fast enough so that a high percentage of martensite is produced in critically stressed areas of the part.

Higher percentages of martensite result in higher fatigue and impact properties after tempering.

Hardenability should not be confused with hardness as such or with maximum hardness.

The maximum attainable hardness of any steel depends solely on carbon content. Also, the maximum hardness values that can be obtained with small test specimens under the fastest cool-ing rates of water quenchcool-ing are nearly always higher than those developed under production heat-treating conditions, because hardenability limitations in quenching larger sizes can result in less than 100% martensite formation.

Basically, the units of hardenability are those of cooling rate—for example, degrees per sec-ond. These cooling rates, as related to the continuous-cooling-transformation behavior of the steel, determine the hardness and micro-structural outcome of a quench. In practice, these cooling rates are often expressed as a

dis-tance, with other factors such as the thermal conductivity of steel and the rate of surface heat removal being held constant. Therefore, the terms Jominy distance (J ) and ideal critical diameter (D_I) derived from the Jominy end-quench test can be used.

The hardenability of steel is governed almost entirely by the chemical composition (carbon and alloy content) at the austenitizing tempera-ture and the austenite grain size at the moment of quenching. In some cases, the chemical com-position of the austenite may not be the same as that determined by chemical analysis, because some carbide may be undissolved at the austen-itizing temperature. Such carbides would be reﬂected in the chemical analysis, but because the carbides are undissolved in the austenite, neither their carbon nor alloy content can con-tribute to hardenability. In addition, by nucleat-ing transformation products, undissolved car-bides can actively decrease hardenability. This is especially important in high-carbon (0.50 to 1.10%) and alloy carburizing steels, which may contain excess carbides at the austenitizing tem-perature. Consequently, such factors as austeni-tizing temperature, time at temperature, and prior microstructure are sometimes very impor-tant variables when determining the basic hard-enability of a speciﬁc steel composition. Certain ingot casting and hot reduction practices may also develop localized or periodic inhomo-geneities within a given heat, further complicat-ing hardenability measurements. The effects of all these variables are discussed in Ref 2.

Table 5 provides a qualitative rating of the hardenability of gear steels. Additional infor-mation on hardness and hardenability can be found in Chapter 9, “Carburizing.”

Machinability. The term machinability is used to indicate the ease or difﬁculty with which a material can be machined to the size, shape, and

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