Control technology for surface treatment of materials using induction hardening
- Sandia National Labs., NM (United States)
In the industrial and automotive industries, induction case hardening is widely used to provide enhanced strength, wear resistance, and toughness in components made from medium and high carbon steels. The process uses significantly less energy than competing batch process, is environmentally benign, and is a very flexible in-line manufacturing process. As such, it can directly contribute to improved component reliability, and the manufacture of high-performance lightweight parts. However, induction hardening is not as widely used as it could be. Input material and unexplained process variations produce significant variation in product case depth and quality. This necessitates frequent inspection of product quality by destructive examination, creates higher than desired scrap rates, and causes de-rating of load stress sensitive components. In addition, process and tooling development are experience-based activities, accomplished by trial and error. This inhibits the use of induction hardening for new applications, and the resultant increase in energy efficiency in the industrial sectors. In FY96, a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement under the auspices of the Technology Transfer Initiative and the Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles was completed. A multidisciplinary team from Sandia National Labs and Delphi Saginaw Steering Systems investigated the induction hardening by conducting research in the areas of process characterization, computational modeling, materials characterization, and high speed data acquisition and controller development. The goal was to demonstrate the feasibility of closed-loop control for a specific material, geometry, and process. Delphi Steering estimated annual savings of $2-3 million per year due to reduced scrap losses, inspection costs, and machine down time if reliable closed-loop control could be achieved. A factor of five improvement in process precision was demonstrated and is now operational on the factory floor.
- Research Organization:
- Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
- OSTI ID:
- 494129
- Report Number(s):
- ORNL/TM-13399; ON: DE97005392; TRN: 97:003310-0025
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: PBD: Apr 1997; Related Information: Is Part Of Advanced Industrial Materials (AIM) program. Annual progress report. FY 1996; PB: 292 p.
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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