It is well known that plasma nitriding has many advantages over gas nitriding, where plasma is particularly cost effective as treatment times are reduced by a factor of between 3 and 5, there is a 50% reduction in energy consumption, and a 50 to 100 times reduction in the use of the working gas. 

Plasma nitriding also has significant process advantages:

•The pay-back period for a new furnace is usually 9 – 12 months. 

•The process is completely non-toxic and easily meets all the requirement of Health & Safety regulations and Environmental control.

•There is less distortion of the material being treated because ion nitriding is performed at a lower temperature of 480 C - 570°C, and under a vacuum.  Surfaces which require masking are easily masked with re-usable mechanical masking devices, which are 100% effective. 

•A higher surface, case, and core hardness are achieved. 

•Wear resistance of the finished product is excellent because the ion nitriding process produces a compound zone which is dense, non-porous, very hard but not brittle, and has a low co-efficient of friction. 

•The results are easily reproducible, because the process of ion nitriding is fully automated, and computer controlled. 

•Satisfactory surface finishes are achieved without additional mechanical treatment because there is minimal deformation of the surface.

So why do so many companies continue to use the old Gas nitriding method?  Probably there is a reluctance to change the technology which has served well over many years, and there may be a fear that the new technology will be expensive to implement.  Monometer Ionitech, offer our clients not only very affordable installations of Plasma Nitriding, but a full commissioning service to ensure that the best possible quality is achieved using their new technology.  The installation has been designed to be fully automated, and any operator can be trained to work with the furnace within one or two days.  Monometer Ionitech has a 25-year tradition in the production and installation for plasma nitriding with more than 120 installations in 11 countries.

Concerning the perceived high costs of plasma nitriding the Monometer Ionitech installation costs less than new installations for gas nitriding, and Monometer Ionitech offer 12 standard models with working volumes from 0.1m3 to 5 m3 together with the possibility of special vacuum chamber sizes to meet client needs.

Monometer Ionitech installations also have the possibility of plasma nitrocarburising where customers achieve the same results as using the Tennifer process, but avoiding all its disadvantages including cost and toxicity

Ionitech was founded 25 years ago by scientists from the Technical University in Sofia and now many of our specialists have also been recruited from the University and are trained to apply the newest technology to achieve economic and practical solutions with plasma furnaces.  In addition, further research and testing is possible in the University’s very well equipped laboratories. 

Recently, Belavtomaz – the major truck manufacturer in the former USSR – installed Monometer Ionitech plasma nitriding furnace equipment.  Previously their problem was poor quality of the internal gear ring on the back axel, which was noisy in operation and exceeded EU noise requirement level.  Ionitech provided a solution by recommending the correct grade of steel to use, and the details of the pre-nitriding process.  Test results were carried out with perfect results.  Subsequently two installations of Ion 100 were manufactured and commissioned in a very short time.  Total personnel required in the heat treatment process for the gear rings is now a total of 4.  There have been big economies of electricity, gases and treatment times.  Several manufacturing processes have been removed including quench hardening, cementation, gas nitriding, as well as  several addition mechanical treatments. Rejects have been decreased to zero.  The two installations have worked more than 10,000 hours per annum, with such success that the furnaces are being used for sub-contract work for many other companies.  A new installation at Motor Sich JSC, is now being installed, which will replace 4 Gas nitriding furnaces. 

Monometer Ionitech offer affordable Plasma Nitriding Furnaces, and will be very pleased to receive your enquiries for nitriding and Nitrocarburising.

 

For further details please contact: David Hall B.Sc. C.Eng. FICME - Monometer Mfg Co Ltd .  Monometer House, Rectory Grove, Leigh-on-Sea, Essex SS9 2HN Tel: +44 1702 472201 Fax: +44 1702 715112