Nitridization
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Nitridization, also known as nitriding, is a process which introduces nitrogen in the surface of a material. It is used in metallurgy for surface-hardening treatment of the steel surface.
[edit] Nitriding of steel
Introduction of nitrogen in the steel is performed at temperatures 500-550 °C (930 to 1020 °F) range. Nitriding is altering the composition of the surface like carburization does. The difference between nitriding and carburization is that in nitridizing nitrogen enters the ferrite, and that the nitridization process does not involve heating into the austenite phase field. As a result it provides excellent dimensional control.
