Identification of the important process parameters to control distortion in heat treatment

A series of computational simulation by using DANTE has been conducted to a Navy c-ring distortion coupons to determine the important material and process parameters that control distortion and residual stress during heat treatment. The austenitizing temperature, Ms (Martensite start) temperature of the steel, the yield strength of austenite as a function of temperature, the temperature dependence heat transfer coefficient of the quenching agent, quenching fluid, part orientation during quenching, immersion speed, quenching temperature and the part geometry are ranked based on their impact. In the present work, the results of these simulations will be presented and discussed.