Zenith Aluminum & Brass Casting Foundry
China sand casting and gravity casting manufacturer

Aluminum Heat treatment

Heat treatment is an important succeeding process for aluminum casting parts. The prime aim of heat treatment is to reinforce the inner structure of aluminum casting parts. Except aluminum high pressure die casting parts, almost other aluminum casting parts can apply succeeding heat treatment. The reason why aluminum high pressure die casting parts fail to apply heat treatment is its porosity. The air in inner body is inclined to escape while heating, as destroys the casting structure. The following table lists the types of heat treatment available by zenith aluminum casting.

Types of Heat treatment available for aluminum casting

Heat treatment process introduction by zenith aluminum casting

Heat treatment involves the use of heating or chilling, normally to extreme temperatures, to achieve a desired result such as hardening or softening of a material. Heat treatment techniques include annealing, case hardening, precipitation strengthening, tempering, and quenching. It is noteworthy that while the term heat treatment applies only to processes where the heating and cooling are done for the specific purpose of altering properties intentionally, heating and cooling often occur incidentally during other manufacturing processes such as hot forming or welding.

Heat treatment of aluminum alloy

Aluminum casting heat treatment is the controlled heating and cooling of aluminum castings to alter their physical and mechanical properties without changing the casting shape. Aluminum casting heat treatment is often associated with increasing the strength of material, but it can also be used to alter certain manufacturability objectives such as improve machining, and improve formability. Thus it is a very enabling manufacturing process that can not only help other manufacturing process, but can also improve product performance by increasing strength or other desirable characteristics.

Aluminum casting heat treatment terms

Aging: Describes a time_temperature_dependent change in the properties of certain alloys. Except for strain aging and age softening, it is the result of precipitation from a solid solution of one or more compounds whose solubility decreases with decreasing temperature. For each alloy susceptible to aging, there is a unique range of time_temperature combinations to which it will respond.

Annealing: A term denoting a treatment, consisting of heating to and holding at a suitable temperature followed by cooling at a suitable rate, used primarily to soften but also to simultaneously produce desired changes in other properties or in microstructure. The purpose of such changes may be, but is not confined to, improvement of machinability; facilitation of cold working; improvement of mechanical or electrical properties; or increase in stability of dimensions. The time_temperature cycles used vary widely both in maximum temperature attained and in cooling rate employed, depending on the composition of the material, its condition, and the results desired. When applicable, the following more specific process names should be used: Black Annealing, Blue Annealing, Box Annealing, Bright Annealing, Cycle Annealing, Flame Annealing, Full Annealing, Graphitizing, Intermediate Annealing, Isothermal Annealing, Process Annealing, Quench Annealing, and Spheroidizing. When the term is used without qualification, full annealing is implied. When applied only for the relief of stress, the process is properly called stress relieving.

Black Annealing: Box annealing or pot annealing, used mainly for sheet, strip, or wire.

Blue Annealing: Heating hot-rolled sheet in an open furnace to a temperature within the transformation range and then cooling in air, to soften the metal. The formation of a bluish oxide on the surface is incidental.

Box Annealing: Annealing in a sealed container under conditions that minimize oxidation. In box annealing, the charge is usually heated slowly to a temperature below the transformation range, but sometimes above or within it, and is then cooled slowly; this process is also called "close annealing" or "pot annealing."

Bright Annealing: Annealing in a protective medium to prevent discoloration of the bright surface.

Cycle Annealing: An annealing process employing a predetermined and closely controlled time_temperature cycle to produce specific properties or microstructure.

Flame Annealing: Annealing in which the heat is applied directly by a flame.

Full Annealing: Austenitizing and then cooling at a rate such that the hardness of the product approaches a minimum.

Graphitizing: Annealing in such a way that some or all of the carbon is precipitated as graphite.

Intermediate Annealing: Annealing at one or more stages during manufacture and before final thermal treatment.

Isothermal Annealing: Austenitizing and then cooling to and holding at a temperature at which austenite transforms to a relatively soft ferrite-carbide aggregate.

Process Annealing: An imprecise term used to denote various treatments that improve workability. For the term to be meaningful, the condition of the material and the time_temperature cycle used must be stated.

Quench Annealing: Annealing an austenitic alloy by Solution Heat Treatment.

Spheroidizing: Heating and cooling in a cycle designed to produce a spheroidal or globular form of carbide.