Developed jointly by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) and the United States Automotive Research Council (USCAR), the SAE USCAR 7 standard describes test methods and practices for detecting the brittleness of steel parts.
A process is a control or peer-verification testing process. The risk of steel embrittlement is minimized by using best practices in the finishing or coating process. Such an application is described in the SAE USCAR 5 standard for preventing hydrogen embrittlement of steel.
Embrittlement is the process of hardening metal, especially hydrogen sensitive metals that are unintentionally introduced. Exposure to hydrogen causes the metal to become brittle and break. This is undesirable for high-strength steel and other construction metals.
The reason why metal is brittle is that hydrogen is accidentally dispersed into it during metal finishing processes, including cleaning, electroplating, and heat treatments. In addition to the strength of the material, the more stress is applied to the metal, the more susceptible it is to hydrogen embrittlement.
The metal hardening process is applied after the metal has undergone an electroplating service and should be carried out as soon as possible (for example, after 3 hours at the latest). Crisping is usually carried out at 220-240 degrees and takes about 4 hours.
According to the researches, the probability of cracking of metals with certain grain boundary arrangements between microscopic crystals where cracks start is variable.
Brittleness is absolutely necessary when removing hydrogen from the metal. Failure to do so brings many drawbacks and dangers.
In short, embrittlement of steels can cause brittle fracture under stress, which is caused by the absorption of hydrogen, phosphorus or carbon during cleaning, galvanic phosphate coating and heat treatment processes.
Specifying the cleaning and polishing requirements for hardened steel parts is essential in reducing the risk of embrittlement. Typical electrolytic processes that cause hydrogen embrittlement are: acid zinc, bright cadmium, bright nickel and bright chromium. Embrittlement is a heat treatment performed after electroplating where hydrogen embrittlement is likely.
Our organization also provides fragility removal verification testing services within the scope of SAE USCAR 7 standard, with its trained and expert staff and advanced technological equipment, among the numerous test, measurement, analysis and evaluation studies it provides for businesses in various sectors.
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