cryogenic treatment
Cryogenic treatment involves taking a metal to extremely low temperatures to increase its hardness, wear resistance, and general durability, thus toughening it and increasing the lifespan of parts subjected to elevated conditions.
Key feature:
- Deep Cooling Process: The metal is cooled very gradually up to about -196°C (-320°F) using liquid nitrogen, then room temperature restored back to it all during this process; thus relieving internal stresses.
- Stronger Material Properties: Hardness improves and lower amounts of residual stress exist. The resistance to wear, fatigue, and corrosion increases.
- Wider Industry Use: They are valuable fields such as aerospace, automotive, tooling, and medical for example, in prolonging the service life of critical components.
Cryogenic treatment effectively refines the microstructure within the metals, which renders them much tougher and more reliable for higher performance. In particular, cryogenically treated brake rotors in automobiles have an added advantage of improved wear resistance and longevity, thus slashing down costs for maintenance. Cryogenically treated cutting tools, on the other hand, maintain their sharpness longer, thus improving efficiencies in machining operations. As advances in technology continue with research, cryogenic treatments are applied in more and more new ways to improve material performance in different industries.