De toekomst van warmtebehandeling: Van microstructuur tot duurzaamheid VWT bijeenkomst

17.00 uur

Ontvangst en registratie

17.30 uur

Diner

19.10 uur

Opening – Rob Jongbloed (Chromin BV), voorzitter van de Vereniging voor Warmtebehandelingstechniek (VWT)

19.15 uur

Dr.-Ing. Matthias Steinbacher

Head of Heat Treatment

Leibniz-Institut für Werkstofforientierte Technologien – IWT

Drivers for the further evolution in heat treatment: tailoring the microstructure of  Case-Hardened Components

Carbonitriding extends conventional carburizing by simultaneously enriching the case with nitrogen besides carbon, producing a dual carbon–nitrogen profile. This dual interstitial profile shifts the resulting case microstructure significantly: retained austenite fractions well above 50 vol.% are commonly obtained alongside finely dispersed chromium-(di)nitride precipitates, while martensite recedes to a supporting role — a pattern seen both in carbonitrided gear steels and in through-hardening bearing steels such as 100Cr6 or 32MnCrMo8. Past and recent investigation did reveal a clear benefit of the mechanical properties of bearings and gears by this approach.

This talk outlines the metallurgical basis of this shift and the atmosphere-side levers used to control it, focusing on ammonia as the nitrogen source in both atmospheric and low-pressure gas carbonitriding, and on the practical challenges this introduces: temperature-dependent ammonia dissociation, its catalytic decomposition at metallic component surfaces, and the resulting need to correct carbon-potential control for shifted CO content. The talk connects these process-control aspects directly to the stability of the retained austenite obtained, offering heat treaters and designers a route to deliberately engineer — rather than merely tolerate — this microstructural constituent.

20.00 uur

Koffie pauze

Dr.-Ing. Matthias Steinbacher

Head of Heat Treatment

Leibniz-Institut für Werkstofforientierte Technologien – IWT

The Future of Sustainable Heat Treatment of Metals

Heat treatment is energy- and emissions-intensive by nature, relying on high-temperature furnaces, protective or reactive atmospheres, and, in many cases, oil or polymer quenchants. As industry moves toward decarbonization, heat treatment faces both pressure and opportunity: electrification of furnace technology, green hydrogen and ammonia as alternative process gases, induction and other localized hardening methods that reduce total energy input.

This talk gives an overview of emerging pathways toward more sustainable heat treatment — from alternative atmospheres and their metallurgical implications, to energy-efficient process routes. It discusses the trade-offs between sustainability goals and the metallurgical requirements of case hardening, nitriding, and induction hardening. The aim is to outline a realistic roadmap: which changes are achievable in the near term, which require fundamental process redevelopment, and where materials science and process engineering must work together to keep heat-treated components both high-performing and environmentally responsible and economically feasible.

21:00 uur

Afsluiting