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Nitrex Metal, St. Laurent, Quebec, announces that FA Krosno<\/span><\/span> S.A. has completed the installation of a Nitrex nitriding system<\/span><\/span> at the manufacturing facility in its namesake city in southeastern Poland. The company is one of the largest players in the European gas springs market, supplying manufacturers of commercial vehicles and agricultural equipment.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Over the past several years, FA Krosno and Nitrex have entered into a research and development initiative to improve the durability of piston rods in gas spring assemblies of passenger vehicles. The piston rod is the highest-stressed part of the assembly, and is subject to buckling, which adversely impacts the service life of the gas spring. The challenge was to design a nitriding cycle that would achieve a high surface hardness for improved wear resistance and minimized friction, and which would ultimately extend the service life of the gas spring. <\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cNitrex nitriding technologies were recognized as the best performing and best suited to the application\u2019s requirements,\u201d says Marcin Stoklosa, Special Projects Manager of Nitrex Metal. \u201cResults from various metallurgical and mechanical tests conducted on the nitrided piston rods confirmed that the specified thickness of the white layer, the oxide thickness of the white layer, corrosion resistance, and the appropriate roughness were consistently obtained after Nitreg nitriding, and these were maintained even after subsequent finishing operations.\u201c <\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Production with the new system started in December 2019. The Nitrex system, pit-type model NX-1220<\/span><\/span>, has overall chamber dimensions of 86 x 136 inches, with capacity to nitride an 8400-pound load. The delivered solution includes dual technologies, Nitreg<\/span><\/span> and ONC. T<\/span><\/span>he ONC is a post-nitriding oxidation process that further enhances the quality of the nitride layer, provides additional corrosion protection, and similarly contributes to the aesthetic finish of the piston rods. <\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n