Impact of measurement errors on the results of nitriding and nitrocarburizing treatments

We have a pretty good idea of what will happen to steel parts if exposed to a defined atmosphere at a given temperature. In order to determine the process parameters we can use the well-known Lehrer Diagram if we plan for a nitriding process, or we might use one of the various Fe-N-C phase diagrams in case of a nitrocarburizing process. All of the diagrams mentioned are giving the phase boundary between alpha iron and gamma prime nitrides as well as the phase boundary towards epsilon (carbo)-nitrides as a function of the nitriding and the carburizing potential and the temperature. In addition we also have to account for the shifting of the phase boundaries typically given for pure iron caused by the alloying elements in real parts made from steel. But what will happen to our parts if we encounter deviations between the actual parameters and the set values during control?