PRC-2001 Rev.

Process Specification for the Heat Treatment of Steel

Alloys

Engineering Directorate

Structural Engineering Division

December 2019

National Aeronautics and

Space Administration

Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center

Houston, Texas

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 PRC-2001 Rev. I

Process Specification for the Heat Treatment of Steel

Alloys

Prepared by: Signature on File 12/20/2019

Daila Gonzalez Date
Materials and Processes Branch/ES4

Reviewed by: Signature on File 12/20/2019

John Figert Date
Materials and Processes Branch/ES4

Approved by: Signature on File 12/21/2019

Brian Mayeaux Date
Materials and Processes Branch/ES4

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 PRC-2001 Rev. I

REVISIONS
VERSION CHANGES DATE
Baseline Original version 5/96
A Expanded sec. 3.0, furnace chart info., tensile requirements 5/27/98
B Changed Training Requirements, Updated to SAE AMS-H-6875A 7/21/99
C Modified Training Requirements, Labeling Tensile Bars & Stock 2/24/00
D Included Information on Post-Weld Stress Relief, Reduced 8/24/00
Labeling Tensile Bars & Stock Requirements

E Changed sec. 6.0 on aging requirements for A286. Updated 6/06/02

document due to reorganization from EM2 to ES4.

F Reviewed for accuracy and updated author. 10/04/06

G Clarified the Usage Statement 8/10/09
H Verify current condition of raw stock material; added statement 10/2011
on tool and die steels; added Table 1 and Table 2; subdivided
PROCESS VERIFICATION section; added ASTM E18 under
REFERENCES section; replaced JSC 8500 with JPR 8500.4
under REFERENCES section; updated and added definitions to
section 10.0; other grammatical changes.

I Deleted Structural Engineering Division logo; updated revision, 12/2019

date, and Approved by signature; added Figure 1 on heat tint to
Section 3.1 Process Sequence; deleted statement on 2hr delay
between welding and stress relieving as previously noted in
Section 3.1 Process Sequence; added AMS 2759/13 (Gaseous
Nitrocarburizing) to Table 2; reworded most of Section 10.0
Definitions; added MTR definition to Section 10.0 Definitions;
alphabetized definitions in Section 10.0 Definitions; minor
grammatical corrections.

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 PRC-2001 Rev. I

1.0 SCOPE

This process specification establishes the engineering requirements for

the heat treatment of steel and stainless steel alloys.

2.0 APPLICABILITY

This specification shall be applicable whenever the heat treatment of steel

or stainless steel alloys is invoked per section 3.0, "Usage." Heat treatment
of steel and stainless steel alloys may be performed on raw stock material
(includes, but not limited to, plate, bar, forgings, and extrusions) or on parts
produced from raw material.

3.0 USAGE

The material to be heat treated shall be listed on the drawing, in the heat
treat condition in which the material is to be procured; the procurement
specification shall be listed alongside the material to be heat treated.
Availability of product forms and tempers may be obtained from a
manufacturing production controller or from an ES4 materials engineer.

This process specification shall be called out on the engineering

drawing by using an appropriate drawing note. The specific heat
treat process or combination of processes shall be noted along with
the final temper. For example:

For Class A (Carbon and Low Alloy Steels):

QUENCH AND TEMPER TO 160-180 KSI PER NASA/JSC PRC-2001.

For Class B (Martensitic Corrosion Resistant Steels (CRES)):

QUENCH AND TEMPER AT 450°F PER NASA/JSC PRC-2001.

For Class C (Austenitic CRES):

ANNEAL PER NASA/JSC PRC-2001.

For Class C (Austenitic CRES):

AGE HARDEN TO CONDITION H1025 NASA/JSC PRC-2001.

3.1 PROCESS SEQUENCE

Unless otherwise specified on the engineering drawing, all parts shall

be heat treated before final machining to remove scale and
decarburization, as well as to avoid dimensional changes. Scale and
decarburization, typically produced at temperatures above 1200°F, are
normally detrimental to the finished part and cannot be removed by

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 PRC-2001 Rev. I

mechanical or chemical finishing techniques. After heat treating, a

minimum of 0.020" will be removed from all scaled or decarburized
rough machined surfaces during final machining.

In some cases, it may be necessary to heat treat after final machining. It

is recommended to restrict heat treat processes to those such as
tempering, which are performed at low temperatures. Heat tint, which
ranges in color from straw to light blue may be formed during these low
temperature heat treatments
(Figure 1).

Figure 1: Heat Tint Color Post Tempering of Steel Samples at Various Temperatures in Circulating Air

It may be required to remove heat tint for cosmetic purposes. An

appropriate finishing procedure to remove the heat tint shall be called out
on the engineering drawing, if heat treating will result in a heat tinted
surface that will not be removed by final machining. For example:

HEAT TREAT AFTER FINAL MACHINING. REMOVE HEAT TINT BY

ELECTROPOLISHING PER NASA/JSC PRC-5009.

Class A and Class B steels often require a stress relieving heat

treatment after welding operations. Stress relieving after welding should
be performed as soon as possible after the welding operation. Post
stress relieving on Class C and Class D steels may not be necessary
for specific reasons. A qualified welding procedure for the specific
application needs to be reviewed before making the stress relieving
note. For example:

STRESS RELIEVE AT 1000°F FOR 2 HOURS IMMEDIATELY AFTER WELDING.

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 PRC-2001 Rev. I

4.0 REFERENCES

All documents listed are assumed to be the current revision unless a

specific revision is listed.

Document Number Document Name

SAE AMS-H-6875 Society of Automotive Engineers,
Inc., Aerospace Material
Specification, Heat Treatment of Steel
Raw Materials

SAEAMS2759 Heat Treatment of Steel Parts

General Requirements

ASTM E18
American Society for Testing and
Materials Specification, Rockwell
Hardness and Rockwell Superficial
Hardness of Metallic Materials

ASTMA370 American Society for Testing and

Materials Specification, Standard Test
Methods and Definitions for
Mechanical Testing of Steel Products

MMPDS Handbook, Metallic Materials

Properties Development and
Standardization

Tl-2000-01 Training Instruction: Training for Heat

Treat Personnel

SAE ARP 1962 Training and Approval of Heat-

Treating Personnel

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 PRC-2001 Rev. I

The following references were used in developing this process specification:

Document Number Document Name

SOP-007.1 Preparation and Revision of Process

Specifications

JPR 8500.4 Engineering Drawing System Requirements

5.0 MATERIALS REQUIREMENTS

Current heat treat condition shall be verified before performing any subsequent
heat treatment on raw stock material. Subsequent heat treatment shall be
performed per AMS-H-6875.

Material requirements for parts shall be as specified in AMS 2759.

6.0 PROCESS REQUIREMENTS

6.1 Raw Stock Steel and Stainless Steel Material

All heat treatment of raw steel and stainless steel alloys shall comply with
the requirements specified in section 3 of SAE AMS-H-6875 and the
corresponding drawing requirements.

Specific heat treating times and temperatures are provided in various

tables in SAE AMS-H-6875. Table 1 provides a list of these heat treating
tables.

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 PRC-2001 Rev. I

Table 1: List of Tables with Heat Treating Times and Temperatures Per SAE
AMS-H-6875

Table Name
1A Heat-Treatment Procedure for Class A (Carbon and Low Alloy) Steel
1B Heat-Treatment Procedure for Class B (Martensitic Corrosion-Resistant)
Steel
1C Annealing Procedure for Class C (Austenitic Corrosion-Resistant) Steel
1D* Heat-Treatment Procedure for Class D (Precipitation-Hardening and
Maraginq) Steel
2A Heating and Holding Time for Annealing, Normalizing, Austenitizing, and
Stress Relieving Class A Steel and Class B Steel
2B Holding Time for Class C (Corrosion-Resistant) Steel
3 Required Tempering Conditions
"An exception to Table 1D must be noted when age hardening A286. The age hardening time and
temperature provided by Table 1D yields the minimum tensile strength that can be attained for A286,
without cold working the material. The tensile strength of A286 can be increased by the amount of
cold work input into the material. The age hardening time and temperature for A286 material that has
been cold worked is not listed in Table 1D. The corresponding material specification(s) shall be used
to age harden A286 material that has been cold worked.

Tools and equipment shall be as specified in SAE AMS-H-6875. Safety

precautions and warning notes shall be as specified in SAE AMS-H-6875.

6.2 Steel and Stainless-Steel Alloy Parts

All heat treatment of steel and stainless-steel alloy parts shall comply with the
requirements specified in section 3 of AMS 2759 and the corresponding drawing
requirements.

Specific heat treating times and temperatures are provided in various derivations
of AMS 2759. Table 2 provides a list of these AMS 2759 derivations.

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 PRC-2001 Rev. I

Table 2: List of AMS 2759 Derivations

Steel and Stainless-Steel Heat Treat Procedures AMS 2759 Derivations

Carbon and Low-Alloy Below 220 ksi UTS AMS 2759/1
Low-Alloy 220 ksi UTS and Higher AMS 2759/2
PH and Maraging AMS 2759/3
Austenitic AMS 2759/4
Martensitic AMS 2759/5
Gas Nitriding AMS 2759/6
Gas and Vacuum Carburizing AMS 2759ll
Ion Nitriding AMS 2759/8
Hydrogen Embrittlement Relief (Baking) of Steel AMS 2759/9
Parts
Automated Gaseous Nitriding Potential AMS 2759/10
Stress Relief of Steel Parts AMS 2759/11
Gaseous Nitrocarburizing, Automatically Controlled AMS 2759/12
by Potentials
Gaseous Nitrocarburizing AMS 2759/13
*Heat Treatment of Parts in a Vacuum AMS 2769
*Not an AMS 2759 specification.

Tools and equipment shall be as specified in AMS 2759. Safety

precautions and warning notes shall be as specified in AMS 2759.

6.3 Tool and Die Steels

An ES4 materials engineer shall be consulted for process

requirements and specific heat treating times and temperatures for
heat treatment of tool and die steels.

7.0 PROCESS QUALIFICATION

Not required. However, work instructions shall be generated for

implementing this process specification. The work instructions shall
contain sufficient detail to ensure that the manufacturing process produces
consistent, repeatable products that comply with this specification.

8.0 PROCESS VERIFICATION

8.1 Verification of Heat Treat Cycles

Verification of furnace temperatures shall be accomplished by recording the

furnace temperatures on strip charts or other suitable hard copy recordings.
Furnace charts for heat treatment shall be maintained with the hardware's

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 PRC-2001 Rev. I

work order router package (or equivalent documentation).

8.2 Heat Treat Verification by Hardness Test

Heat treat verification of steel and stainless steel is typically achieved by

measuring hardness per ASTM E18.

8.2.1 Notations Related to Hardness Tests

Hardness tests will be performed on the raw stock material or the semi-
finished part unless otherwise specified on the engineering drawing. Hardness
impressions will be machined away during subsequent machining for most
parts. When hardness impressions must be made on the finished part, a test
location shall be chosen by the designer and the materials engineer that will
not be detrimental to the function of the finished part. Notes must be included
on the engineering drawing, such as:

HARDNESS TEST SHALL BE PERFORMED ON FINISHED PART IN

SPECIFIED LOCATION

Hardness tests may be performed on sample parts instead of finished parts.

Sample parts shall be sketched and/or described on the engineering drawing.
They may have a simplified contour and may use nominal dimensioning.
Sample parts shall be made from the same lot of raw stock material and · shall
be processed before heat treatment in an identical manner as the finished
parts.

When the heat treating process includes quenching, the sample parts must be
of similar cross section as the finished parts, or shall be parted from the same
lot of raw stock material that will be used for finished parts post heat treatment.
If finished parts have to be processed in more than one batch and sample
parts are needed, each batch must have its own set of labeled sample parts.

When a hardness test is to be performed on a sample part, special instructions

shall be included on the engineering drawing, such as:
HARDNESS TEST SHALL BE PERFORMED ON SAMPLE PART.
SAMPLE PART SHALL CONSIST OF ONE 1" LENGTH OF THE SAME
RAW STOCK MATERIAL USED FOR FINISHED PARTS.

OR

HARDNESS TEST SHALL BE PERFORMED ON 2" PROLONGATION

OF RAW STOCK MATERIAL THAT IS PARTED AFTER HEAT
TREATMENT.

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 PRC-2001 Rev. I

8.2.2 Hardness Test Results

Hardness test results shall meet the values that appear on the procurement
specifications or the drawing requirements.

8.3 Heat Treat Verification by Tensile Test

When tensile tests are required by the drawing for more critical parts, tensile
tests shall be performed according to ASTM A370 by either the JSC Structures
Test Laboratory, the Receiving Inspection and Test Facility (RITF), or an
accredited mechanical testing laboratory.

8.3.1 Notations Related to Tensile Tests

Sample parts for tensile coupons shall be machined according to ASTM A370,
using full-sized coupons whenever possible. Sample parts shall be machined
from the same lot of raw stock material and processed before heat treatment
in an identical manner as the finished parts. The number of coupons, grain
direction (when applicable), and any special acceptance criteria (i.e.: tensile
strength, % elongation, etc.) shall be noted on the engineering drawing when
tensile testing is required. For example:

TENSILE TESTING IS REQUIRED AND SHALL BE PERFORMED ON

SAMPLE PART(S). SAMPLE PARTS SHALL CONSIST OF THREE 6"
LENGTHS OF THE SAME RAW STOCK MATERIAL LOT USED FOR
FINISHED PARTS.

8.3.2 Labeling of Tensile Coupons

Tensile coupons shall be labeled individually. Label information shall always

include material lot certification #. If the tensile bars or tensile coupons are
made prior to heat treating, the tensile bars or tensile coupons shall be labeled
using austenitic stainless tags and austenitic stainless wire. If the tensile bars
or tensile coupons are made after heat treating, cotton string and paper tags
may be used instead of stainless tags and wire. Paper tags shall include
the material type, the material lot certification #, and the work order router
number.

8.3.3 Tensile Test Results

Tensile test results for Class A, Class 8, and Class C steels shall meet the
yield strength and elongation drawing requirements per MMPDS. Tensile
tests are not required to verify annealed condition of Class C steels.

8.4 Miscellaneous

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 PRC-2001 Rev. I

Hardness testing and tensile testing are not required post weld stress
relieving operations, except for rare exceptions.

9.0 TRAINING AND CERTIFICATION OF PERSONNEL

All heat treatment of steel and stainless steel alloys used for flight
hardware shall be performed by qualified operators who have been
certified according to the requirements in Tl-2000-01, Training for Heat
Treat Personnel. For vendors, a training program consistent with the
recommended practices in SAE ARP 1962 shall be required.

10.0 DEFINITIONS

Age Harden Aging that causes hardening constituents to

strain and strengthen the lattice.

Annealing A treatment consisting of heating to and holding

at a suitable temperature, followed by slow rate
cooling, used primarily to soften metallic
materials.

Austenitizing Forming austenite by heating a ferrous

alloy into the transformation range (partial
austenitizing) or above the transformation
range (complete austenitizing).

Cryogenic Treatment carried out after quenching to

Treatment transform retained austenite into martensite,
involving cooling and holding at a Cryogenic
temperature.

Decarburization Loss of carbon from the surface of a carbon-

containing alloy by reaction with other elements
(usually oxygen) during heat treatment

Heat Tint A thin, tightly adhering oxide layer that forms when
steels are heat treated at low temperatures, or for
a short time, in air or in a mildly oxidizing
atmosphere; the color ranges from straw to light
blue.

Material Lot A single batch (bar, forging, extrusion, etc.) of

material that is produced by the mill vendor and is
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 PRC-2001 Rev. I

documented by a MTR.

Material Test A report generated by a mill, and provided by a

Report (MTR) mill or a material vendor when procuring raw
stock. MTRs include mill lot elemental chemistry
data, as-received mechanical properties such as
hardness and/or tensile strength, as well as
demonstrable mechanical properties such as
tensile strength, yield strength, percent
elongation, and reduction of area

Normalizing A heat treating cycle for steels above the

ferrite/austenite transformation temperature
followed by cooling in air.

Quenching Rapid cooling from the austenitizing or solution

heat treating temperature.

Tempering Reheating hardened steel to decreases hardness

and to increase both ductility and toughness.
Scale A heavy, penetrating oxide layer that forms when
steels are heat treated at higher temperatures, or
at longer times, in air or other oxidizing
atmospheres.

Solid Solution A single, solid, homogeneous crystalline phase

containing two or more chemical species.

Stress Relieving Heating to a suitable temperature (50°F below

the tempering temperature), holding long enough
to reduce residual stresses, and then cooling
slowly enough to minimize the development of
residual stresses.

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