The aim of carburization is to increase the carbon concentration in the surface layers of steel in order to achieve a harder wear-resistant surface. This is usually done by holding the steel in a gas mixture containing CH4 and/or CO at a temperature where austenite is present.A thick plate of 0.3 wt%C steel is carburized at 930?C. The carburizing gas used in the treatment holds the surface concentration at 1.0wt % C. Assume the plate is so thick that the diffusing carbon does not reach the opposite side of the plate over the course of the treatment. Given that the diffusivity of carbon in iron at this temperature is D = 1.1×10?9 m2?s, determine how long it will take for the carbon concentration to reach 0.6wt % C at a depth of 0.3mm?
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