A sound pressure field during the quenching of a steel specimen in different water solutions

Abstract

The purpose of controlling the quenching process of an orange-hot steel workpiece is to ensure its required surface hardness. A sound in a cooling liquid generated by the quenching process was experimentally analyzed. It contains sufficient information about the ongoing process for its quantification, and it can be used in real time. Traditionally, the quenching and the resultant hardening can be controlled by selecting different process parameters, like, for example the characteristics of the cooling liquid, the velocity of the cooling liquid flow, its temperature, the temperature of the work-piece, and many others. The possibility of controlling the quenching process by using acoustic cavitation is considered in this article.

Keywords

• acoustic cavitation
• quenching
• steel hardening
• ultrasound