Can you quench a blade in liquid nitrogen?

In the shallow treatment, the blade steel is brought to approximately -112°F for five hours, while in the deep treatment it is reduced to roughly -321°F for about 35 hours. This is most often accomplished through immersion in liquid nitrogen.

Can you quench metal in liquid nitrogen?

Cryogenic hardening is a metal treatment process that’s characterized by the use of liquid nitrogen to freeze metal. While temperatures vary, it’s not uncommon for metal to reach -301 degrees Fahrenheit during this process.

What does Cryo treating a knife do?

Cryogenic treatment is a common process designed to enhance the performance of metal blades. Extreme deep freezing increases the service life of knives by improving their resistance to wear. As a one-time treatment, freezing knife blades makes them more durable and less prone to chipping and fracturing under stress.

Why shouldn’t you quench a water blade?

Water is one of the most efficient quenching media where maximum hardness is desired, but there is a small chance that it may cause distortion and tiny cracking. These oil-based fluids often oxidize and form a sludge during quenching, which consequently lowers the efficiency of the process.

What does cryogenics do to steel?

Cryogenic metal treatment increases the density of metal materials, making them stronger and more solid. This increases their performance, durability, and wear resistance while reducing friction and surface roughness, and thereby reduces part replacement costs and associated downtime.

What is D2 steel good for?

D2 steel will retain its hardness up to a temperature of 425 °C (797 °F). The chromium-rich alloy carbides in the D2 steel create excellent resistance to wear from sliding contact with other metal or abrasive materials. This steel has a high wear resistance and creates a tough knife that holds an edge.

What does cryo treatment do to steel?

Cryogenic treatment is a metal treatment that strengthens and enhances the mechanical characteristics of metal materials by using cryogenic temperatures. Subjecting workpieces to temperatures below -190°C improves properties like wear resistance and stabilization.

What quenches faster oil or water?

Oil has a slower rate of cooling compared to either water or brine, but faster than air, making it an intermediate quench.

Is it possible to quench a blade in L ni?

This is commonly done on high alloy steels like 440C, but can also be done with low alloy steels like O1, L6 and 52100, and will result in a few extra points of hardness. As for quenching directly in L Ni, I don’t think there a point even if it doesn’t end in CATASTROPHY, most likely it will just end in a lot of cracked blades.

Why don’t knives explode in liquid nitrogen?

With liquid nitrogen you won’t have this explosion because you don’t have the explosive type bond breaking, it will only cook off very fast instead. This will allso mean a lot of heat is transferred from the blade to the liquid.

What is liquid nitrogen used for?

From what I understand liquid Nitrogen is actually used on steel that has already quenched in other medias such as water, oil or salt and tempered. When the steel is cooled to really, really cold temperatures the retained austenite (austenite that is not transformed to martensite in the quench) is transformed to martensite.

Can you use liquid nitrogen to harden steel?

-It might even slightly nitride your edge for extra hardness. Has anyone here actually tried it? From what I understand liquid Nitrogen is actually used on steel that has already quenched in other medias such as water, oil or salt and tempered.