Optimizing Pre-oxidation for Your Nitriding Process

Pre-oxidation treatment of plain carbon and low alloy steels prior to nitriding and ferritic-nitrocarburizing (FNC) has been performed and studied for many years. Scientists have carried out tests focused on how pre-oxidation affects nitride formation with focus on kinetics and thermodynamics of the reactions. Gaseous nitriding cycles with variations in pre-oxidation temperature and time were performed in an attempt to understand if there is an optimal process setup for nitride initiation and compound layer development. These tests were intended to help manufacturers understand whether or not there is a range of temperatures and times to generate the best properties for a given alloy.