This study demonstrates how normalizing alters microstructure and reduces hardness in white cast iron, indicating significant treatment effects.
Normalizing is a heat treatment process involving heating the iron to an austenitic temperature and then air cooling. This study aimed to investigate the effects of normalizing on the microstructure and hardness of white cast iron. The methodology included subjecting white cast iron samples to normalizing treatment, followed by detailed microstructural analysis using scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy to observe changes at the micro-level, and hardness testing employing the Vickers hardness test to quantify the improvements. The results revealed that normalizing significantly altered the microstructure, leading to the refinement of carbide phases and the formation of a graphite phase in the cementite and pearlite matrix. The Vickers hardness test showed a decrease in hardness from 537.033 VHN to 444.933 VHN after normalization. The findings demonstrated that normalizing reduced the hardness properties of white cast iron by 17.14%. The study underscores the importance of heat treatment processes in optimizing the performance characteristics of cast iron materials.
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Darmawan et al. (2025) studied this question.
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