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Tempering is a heat treatment technique for metals and alloys. In steels, tempering is done to "toughen" the metal by transforming brittle martensite into bainite or a combination of ferrite and cementite. Precipitation hardening alloys, like many grades of aluminum and superalloys, are tempered to precipitate intermetallic particles which strengthen the metal.

The brittle martensite becomes strong and ductile after it is tempered. Carbon atoms were trapped in the austenite when it was rapidly cooled, typically by oil or water quenching, forming the martensite. The martensite becomes strong after being tempered because when reheated, the microstructure can rearrange and the carbon atoms can diffuse out of the distorted BCT structure. After the carbon diffuses, the result is nearly pure ferrite.

In metallurgy, there is always a tradeoff between ductility and brittleness. This delicate balance highlights many of the subtleties inherent to the tempering process. Precise control of time and temperature during the tempering process are critical to achieve a metal with well balanced mechanical properties.

Tempering

Tempering is a heat treatment technique for metals and alloys. In steels, tempering is done to "toughen" the metal by transforming brittle martensite into bainite or a combination ...

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Tempering - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

těm'pər) Pronunciation Key v. tem·pered, tem·per·ing, tem·pers v. tr. To modify by the addition of a moderating element; moderate: "temper its doctrinaire logic with a ...

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