Modelling of the carburizing and quenching process applied to caterpillar track bushings

The carburizing–quenching process applied to caterpillar track bushings was studied by means of experimental and numerical analyses. The numerical model was developed on the basis of the real cycle. The purpose of this work is to predict the carbon profiles, microstructural phase changes, hardness and residual stress that occur during quenching using finite element techniques. Good agreement was obtained between the experimental and numerical results in terms of carbon diffusion and hardness profiles. The Sysweld® numerical code was used to perform the simulations. (paper)