Increasing wear resistance of the protective sleeve of the centrifugal pump made of gray cast iron by surface hardening

One of the weak spots that reduce the guaranteed operating time of centrifugal pumps is the assembly that includes the seal and protective sleeves. The main purpose of the bushings in the rotor kit is to protect the shaft from corrosion, erosion and wear. The sleeve operates under abrasive wear conditions by packing elements and abrasive particles that get into the liquid pumped by the pump. The protective sleeves made of gray cast iron do not meet the service life in connection with accelerated surface wear. Goal. The purpose of the work is to ensure high wear resistance of cast iron pump parts by heat treatment. Method. The chemical composition was determined on a portable laser analyzer Laser Z200 C +. The structure was studied using an optical microscope. The wear was investigated by the roller-block method on a friction machine. Surface quenching was carried out with a high-frequency lamp generator in a single-turn inductor. Results. The microstructure of gray cast iron as cast consists of pearlite, ferite, double phosphide eutectic and inclusions of lamellar graphite. Microhardness of small-lamellar pearlite is Н50 = 1550–2220 MPa, microhardness of phosphide eutectic is Н50 = 6500–8000 MPa. Surface induction quenching by high-frequency currents followed by low tempering is an effective way to increase the wear resistance of cast iron products of small cross-section and does not cause warping. Cast iron for surface quenching should have a pearlite structure, and graphite should be contained in the form of small inclusions. The optimal heating temperature for induction hardening was determined as 900 °С, which made it possible to obtain the microstructure of the hardened layer – martensite, double phosphide eutectic and graphite. Scientific novelty. The developed modes of surface quenching make it possible to preserve a double phosphide eutectic in the structure of the surface layer, which makes it possible to obtain high hardness and wear resistance of the hardened layer. Practical significance. Surface induction quenching with low tempering of cast gray iron increased its wear resistance by 2,4 times. The previous normalization had practically no effect on the durability of cast iron, since its structure contains less than 10% ferrite.