Laser Hard

qslrokrg gas carburizing with l a s e r h

enabled Garrett Turbine Engine )t0produce~periortorque

airplane engines while nng costs by 61%. The small,

herdening was -it and "-anddtendistortedtheDatt~rerwir.

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E!bWWOnd.Spr.ndUplpmcmt.TheUsed

investment castings reduces the numberof surfaces that require subsequent machining from 17 to only 8. Eliminated are plating, masking,stripping, and cleaning operations as weH as carburizing furnaces, subzero freezers, hardening furnaces, quench presses, salt baths, and other related equipment. krrw twmound-lasa work In Lead time hubeen reduced by eliminating posthardening operations nd because the hardening operations can be performed on JloQ ffooc without transporting hardware to remote

pmceas.

andspaceaavi"thless

.

, mantenance andfloor space have been reduced. Solutions used to strip copper from the used, eliminating disposalconcerns. The major energy reduction comes from Irr,didktion the high-temperature gas carburizing and a 100-piece hmdming.operations. Energy used to carburize Id has been reduced from 800 kwh to only.1.1 kwh. More modest savings come from the elimination of other unit operations such as plating, freezing, and machining steps. Finally energy usage per finished part is also significantly reduced by reduction in scrap rate.

hardenkg typewriterkeys, farm implements, and parts of hand t d s , such as saw teeth and hammer heads. Process refinement is continuing on gears, splines and shafts. For more informationon laser hardening,see TechCommentary Vd. 3,No.9 on Laser Cutting.

Garrett Turbine Engine Company, Phoenix, Arizona President-Mal Craig Approximately 7000 employees Garrett turbine engines are used in commercial, industrial and military applications including propulsion engines for aircraft, auxiliary power systeys and industrial gas turbines. Company philosophy: Doing the job right the first time.

What Did It All Cost? The a l ser equipment cost about$250,000 and canbe used for a varietyof parts, not just torque load arms. GTEC e#pgcEs a payback period of about 2 years. In addition to the

The Center fw Materiels F a b r i i (CMF) would lib to thank Larry Cidek and W,a merical-controlled method is needed to move the Gary Benedict of GTEC for valuable contributions made tomiis issue. pCa through the laser beam.GTEC uses a 5-axis mitting Arizona Public Service provideselectric service to Garrett Turbine Engine machine although generally only 1 or 2 axes are needed for C~pany. J2 lassr hardening. CMF is operaled by Bettelle's Columbus Division. Basic fund&g is provided ky the A person familiar with heat treating can operate the laser Eledri Power Research Itmttute, a nonpmfiiidlute that conclucEs appliiions on behalf d the United States electric utility industry. TedtApplication with only a few hours of instruction in its operation and safety development is one of the ways the Centerassists industry in implementingcost- and energyprocedures. e f f i c i i , electric-based technologies in materials fabrication and related fields. T k

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Lkn: Hlgh-Quallty Productsat

Using laeec hardening for torque load arms and other prls has enhanced GTEC's ability to maintain high

issue was cdunded by a grant from the United States Department of Energy, O f f i i of lnduslrial Programs.

J4-21,2& 25,29,62.84.89 -11, 19, 23, 24, 31-33, 41, 42, 44-47, 4 9 , 62, 6 6 , 6 8 tl"14.24.28,43.51,64 SB-41,42

" " An EPRl R&D Applications Center 505 Kino AvenueColumbus, Ohio 43201-2693 (614) 424-7737 Cowright 0 1987

TechAwMationiVd. 1/No.18 Battelle Memorial Instlttde Columbus. Ohio

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