In order to use quench oils over extended periods of time, it is necessary to understand how their properties and performance respond to heat and oxidation. This study investigates the effect of thermal and oxidative deterioration on dark and transparent quench oils. It describes the performance and property changes observed using accelerated testing methods and explains how quench oil behaviors in a laboratory setting compare with actual quench furnace usage.

In the heat treating process, it is important for parts to be cooled uniformly in order to reduce distortion while obtaining target hardness. However, it is difficult to cool the parts uniformly due to the presence of the vapor blanket stage in oil quenching. In this study, we investigated the influences of cooling unevenness in various heat treatment conditions, such as the types of oils having different vapor stage lengths, and using varying agitation and oscillation rates with these oils. We found that cooling unevenness was decreased by using the quenching oil with a shorter vapor blanket stage length. Additionally, the cooling unevenness was decreased by agitation and oscillation compared to quenching without agitation. In conclusion, we found selecting a quenching oil with the shortest vapor blanket stage length and combining agitation and oscillation was the most effective method in reducing the distortion of parts after oil quenching.

Because quench oil deterioration varies depending on the operating conditions, maintaining constant performance is difficult. Various defective phenomena occur in response to changes in the quench oil degradation. In this paper, we will examine how the oil condition, cooling performance, brightness and carbide growth are effected by various defective phenomena such as oil oxidation, thermal decomposition etc. In doing so we would like to introduce important points in managing and setting operating conditions to optimize the performance of quench oils.