Quenching involves the rapid removal of heat from components in a predictable fashion. The performance of quenching media is fundamental to the cost effectiveness of production, helping to ensure that product integrity is maintained and that distortion and scrap or rework is minimized. Cooling Curve Analysis helps by providing a tool that can be used to assess the performance of a quenchant under controlled conditions. People who have recently joined the heat treating industry may not be familiar with the background to the monitoring of the through-life properties of quenchants. This paper examines the historical development and usage of the Wolfson method for Quenchant Cooling Curve Analysis, adopted as the basis for ASTM D6200 and ISO 9950. The emphasis of this presentation is on oil quenchants, though my comments generally apply to polymers as well, provided agitation equipment is used.
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