Surface hardening of steel in a solar furnace

The concentration of solar energy provides the possibility to get power densities high enough to produce surface modifications of materials, with low environmental impact. The present paper discusses the possibilities of surface hardening steel by means of concentrated solar energy. Surface treatments have been made by using the solar furnace of the Platafoma Solar in Almeria (Spain), which consists of a group of heliostats and a parabolic mirror. The surface transformation hardening treatment was performed on a 40CrMo4 steel. The paper presents the microstructural changes and the hardness values obtained after the solar treatment in a superficial zone. According to the power density applied on the sample, the hardened zone varied between 1 and 10 mm deep and the treatment time was less than 30 s. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science S.A.