Surface carbides formation during vacuum carburizing of AISI 9310

CarbToolⒸ software developed by CHTE is an effective tool to simulate the carburizing process which is widely used in industry. It successfully predicts the carbon concentration profile for most materials but for AISI 9310 in vacuum carburizing. It frequently over predicts the experimental results. Carbides can form on the surface to impede the diffusion of the carbon atoms into the steel. In this study, AISI 9310 steel was vacuum carburized by boost only step with different time periods. It was characterized by metallography, XRD and SEM. Multiple carburizing cycles with shorter boost time are suggested to avoid the carbides formation.