[TheForge] Harden & temper

[Jerry Frost]

Soap is a surfacant (wetting agent) breaking surface tension wetting the 
steel better and helps restrict the formation of the steam sheath that 
insulates the steel.  Sugar raises the boiling temp a kitchen cookbook will 
give specific temps in the candy section.

A much better surfacant is Sodium Laural Sulphate as found in most shampoos 
and every soils lab I've ever seen, though I don't know what cooking it with 
critical temp steel will release.

I think the process they're talking about is mostly speed related which is 
good for a couple reasons. First there's less time for uneven heat and chill 
making more even results, time IS money and as I recall the steel is 
malleable and tougher than as milled.

Jer
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Ron Childers" <ron at munlaw.net>
To: "Blacksmithing List Sponsored by ABANA" <theforge at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Friday, June 17, 2011 7:51 PM
Subject: Re: [TheForge] Harden & temper


>I thought soap lowered the boiling point; so does sugar...
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net
> [mailto:theforge-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of peter fels
> Sent: Friday, June 17, 2011 2:30 PM
> To: Blacksmithing List Sponsored by ABANA
> Subject: Re: [TheForge] Harden & temper
>
> Quenching in a pressurized vessel to rise the boiling temperature?
>
> On Jun 17, 2011, at 10:32 AM, Jerry Frost wrote:
>
>> Salts and caustics also raise the boiling temp of water.
>>
>> As I read the part of the article I could, I gathered the benefit of
> this
>> type of heat treat process is it yields a tough yet malleable result.
>>
>> Of course I could've missed something, I skimmed the article and got
>> distracted by graphenes. <sigh>
>>
>> Jer