www.cryogenicsociety.

org

19

SPRING 2010 | VOLUME 26 | NUMBER 2

Improving Tools with Cold Treatment

by Dr. Paul Stratton, Consultant, dr.paul.stratton@googlemail.com

The following is one perspective on

cryogenic treatment, mentioning just a few
equipment manufacturers. We invite reader
response to this article. Tell us more or give
us your insights into the process and its
applications.

large improvement in
wear was not fully
understood. This has
led to some inconsistencies in the results
obtained.

There are many uses for cold treatment in the manufacture of tools. Cold
treatment to transform retained austenite as an alternative to multiple tempering is used by many manufacturers as it
shortens the treatment time and reduces
costs.

It is now generally
acknowledged that the
wear improvement is
produced by the formation of large numbers
of nano-scale coherent
h-carbides.
When
martensite is subjected
to deep cold around the
boiling point of liquid
nitrogen (-196C) for
Figure 1. The effect of deep cold treatment on retained
extended periods, disaustenite in D2
locations agglomerate
six times. In the cryogenic treatment to form nucleation sites.
option, quenching is continued to a
When the steel is subsequently tempoint below the martensite finish temperature, completely transforming the pered, the h-carbides precipitate at these
sites. It is known that no nucleation sites
retained austenite to martensite.
form in the martensite produced by the
Usual treatment temperatures are in cooling itself and it is this together with
the range -70C for low alloy steels the processing time that has caused the
down to -150C for high alloy steels. process inconsistency.
The treatment must be followed by a
Cold treatment only produces h-cartempering cycle, as after any cryogenic
treatment cycle, to ensure that no brittle, bides in the martensite, so if the tool
untempered martensite remains when contains a large amount of retained
austenite after quenching, subsequent
the part is put into service.
treatment has less effect.
Experiments on D2 using various
To counter this, the tool must be
combinations of cryogenic treatments,
tempering and austenitizing tempera- cooled to transform the retained austentures showed (Figure 1) that cryogenic ite first, say -90C for D2, and then
treatment at -90C followed by a single returned to room temperature before the
temper was sufficient to convert all the deep cold treatment. Similarly, if the
retained austenite to martensite, saving treatment time is not long enough to
agglomerate the dislocations then there
both time and cost.
is no effect. The minimum treatment
Deep cold treatment
time is reported to be 24 hours with furDeep cold treatment of tools has ther improvements up to at least 48
been used since the early 1980s. Today it hours.

During quenching of steels from the

austenitising temperature, martensite
begins to form at the martensite start
temperature. This temperature is mainly
dependent on the alloy content of the
steel and for tool steels it is in the range
of 200C-300C.
The transformation continues until
the martensite finish temperature is
reached. The martensite finish temperature, which also depends on alloy composition, may be below room temperature, resulting in high levels of retained
austenite when cooling to room temperature only.
The combination of hard martensite
and very soft austenite is unacceptable
in most applications. As well as reducing overall hardness, retained austenite
also affects the machinability of the
steel. There is a propensity to grind
cracking caused by stress transformation taking place during the process.
There is also an inherent dimensional instability due to the 4% volume
change as the austenite transforms during use or storage, particularly where
either involve significant temperature
excursions. It is therefore necessary to
have some means of fully transforming
retained austenite. This can be achieved
either by tempering or by cryogenic
treatment.
The tempering option involves heating above the martensite start temperature then cooling back to ambient up to

is used extensively in the US where a

recent survey by R. A. Rhodes of the
Cryogenic Institute of New England
showed that there were more than 30
companies offering the service.
However, it is not so popular in Europe.
Part of the reason for this is probably
that until recently the mechanism for the

When the processing is carried out

correctly, some huge improvements
have been reported; up to ten times the
life for D2 forging dies.
Equipment for cryogenic processing
(Continued on page 21)

www.cryogenicsociety.org

21

SPRING 2010 | VOLUME 26 | NUMBER 2

Improving Tools with

Cold Treatment
(Continued from page 19)

Processors can use liquid nitrogen effectively to achieve the

temperatures necessary for deep cold treatment and to get quick
cooldown rates.
One of the most common techniques is to use a spray header
system with atomizing nozzles that convert the liquid nitrogen to
very cold gas, as the liquid nitrogen flashes to a vapor and warms
up. Only the cold gas and not the fine droplets of liquid should
come in contact with the surface of the part being cooled to avoid
spot martensite formation. It is possible to control the temperature by controlling the nitrogen flow. Direct cooling is the most
efficient means to achieve low cryogenic temperatures for controlled processing.

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Figure 2. A top loading 921 Deep Cryogenic Processor

Cryogenic chambers come in a variety of sizes and configurations. The top-loading 921 Deep Cryogenic Processor from 300
Below Inc. in Figure 2 offers an economical solution for tool makers or users. By using liquid nitrogen as the cooling medium, the
chamber is suitable for cryogenic treatment and deep cold processing. It is managed by a computer process controller executing
precise dry temperature changes over time. The chamber is loaded
manually or by using a hoist or overhead crane. The interior is
made of stainless steel, as are all
piping and components that are
exposed to the liquid or cold
nitrogen gas.

Figure 3. A front-loaded
Cryogenic Cabinet Freezer,
CRYOFLEXCCFV2

The chamber in Figure 3

from Linde Gas has a sidehinged door. The height of the
chamber can be aligned with
automated part transfer equipment that might be part of a heat
treatment
processing
line.
Interior dimensions accommodate a standard heat treatment
basket. The unit can also be
loaded manually if required.

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