Carburization device and carburization method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2018080113-A1
Application number	US-201715814892-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Nov 16, 2017
Priority date	May 19, 2015
Publication date	Mar 22, 2018
Grant date	—

Abstract

A carburization device includes a heating furnace which heats a material, a transfer mechanism, an alcohol vapor generator, an alcohol vapor spraying portion, a quenching tank, and an exhaust heat intake tube. The transfer mechanism moves a plurality of materials. The alcohol vapor generator uses part of heat generated by the heating furnace as a heat source. As the alcohol vapor spraying portion repeats a vapor spraying step and a diffusion step a plurality of times in the heating furnace. In the vapor spraying step, by spraying alcohol vapor on the material which moves inside the heating furnace, carbon in the alcohol is adsorbed to the material. In the diffusion step, an interval for diffusing the carbon adsorbed to the material is taken.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A carburization device comprising:
a heating furnace which heats a material made of steel; a transfer mechanism which continuously or intermittently moves a plurality of materials each corresponding to the material from an inlet portion toward an outlet portion of the heating furnace; an organic compound vapor generator which generates organic compound vapor by evaporating a liquid organic compound; an organic compound vapor spraying portion which sprays the organic compound vapor on the material moving within the heating furnace, thereby causing carbon in the organic compound to be adsorbed to the material, and sprays the organic compound vapor on the material again after an interval of time for diffusing the carbon adsorbed to the material in the material; and quenching means for rapidly cooling the material taken out of the heating furnace and producing a hardened structure in the material.

2 . The carburization device of claim 1 , further comprising exhaust heat intake means for using part of heat generated by the heating furnace as a heat source of the organic compound vapor generator.

3 . The carburization device of claim 1 , wherein the organic compound vapor generator comprises a container portion which accommodates the liquid organic compound, and a porous body into which the liquid organic compound in the container portion is penetrated and diffused, and the organic compound vapor is produced by heating the inside of a flow hole of the porous body.

4 . The carburization device of claim 2 , wherein the organic compound vapor generator comprises a container portion which accommodates the liquid organic compound, and a porous body into which the liquid organic compound in the container portion is penetrated and diffused, and the organic compound vapor is produced by heating the inside of a flow hole of the porous body.

5 . The carburization device of claim 3 , wherein the organic compound vapor generator comprises heating means for heating at least a part of an inner surface of the flow hole.

6 . The carburization device of claim 4 , wherein the organic compound vapor generator comprises heating means for heating at least a part of an inner surface of the flow hole.

7 . The carburization device of claim 1 , wherein the heating furnace is a heat treatment furnace which heats the material to an austenitizing temperature.

8 . The carburization device of claim 2 , wherein the heating furnace is a heat treatment furnace which heats the material to an austenitizing temperature.

9 . The carburization device of claim 1 , wherein the organic compound vapor spraying portion comprises a plurality of nozzles which are arranged at separate stages in a moving direction of the transfer mechanism.

10 . The carburization device of claim 2 , wherein the organic compound vapor spraying portion comprises a plurality of nozzles which are arranged at separate stages in a moving direction of the transfer mechanism.

11 . The carburization device of claim 1 , wherein the liquid organic compound is an alcohol solution.

12 . The carburization device of claim 2 , wherein the liquid organic compound is an alcohol solution.

13 . The carburization device of claim 11 , wherein the alcohol solution is ethyl alcohol.

14 . The carburization device of claim 12 , wherein the alcohol solution is ethyl alcohol.

15 . A carburization method for a steel product characterized by comprising:
heating a material made of steel to a temperature at which quenching can be performed in a heating furnace; producing organic compound vapor by evaporating a liquid organic compound; moving the material from an inlet portion toward an outlet portion of the heating furnace continuously or intermittently; repeating a vapor spraying step of spraying the organic compound vapor on the material in the heating furnace and a diffusion step of diffusing carbon adsorbed to the material a plurality of times in the heating furnace; and rapidly cooling the material taken out of the heating furnace, thereby producing a hardened structure.

Assignees

• Nat Univ Corp Yokohama Nat Univ
• Nhk Spring Co Ltd

Inventors

• Nakao Wataru
• Tange Akira
• Tango Koichi
• Kai Morimichi

Classifications

• F27B9/045

  Furnaces with controlled atmosphere · CPC title

• C23C8/22 Primary

  of ferrous surfaces · CPC title

• C23C8/20

  Carburising · CPC title

• C21D9/02

  for springs · CPC title

• F27B9/3005

  arrangements for circulating gases · CPC title