austemper
|aus-tem-per|
🇺🇸
/ˈɔːstɛmpər/
🇬🇧
/ˈɔːstɛmpə/
heat-treat (to form bainite)
Etymology
'austemper' originates from English coinage combining 'austenite' (the iron phase named after Sir W.C. Roberts-Austen) and the verb 'temper' (from Latin 'temperare' via Old French), where the element 'austen-' refers to the austenite phase and 'temper' meant 'to temper or heat-treat'.
'austenite' was named in the 19th century after Sir W.C. Roberts-Austen; in the 20th century metallurgists formed the compound term 'austemper' / 'austempering' by joining 'austen-' with 'temper' to name the specific heat-treatment process that yields bainite.
Initially the components referred respectively to the 'austenite' phase and general 'tempering'; combined, the coined term 'austemper' came to mean specifically 'to temper (heat-treat) by the austempering method' and has retained that technical meaning.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a device, operation, or instance of performing austempering; (less common) the austempering treatment itself.
The laboratory used an austemper to treat the test specimens.
Synonyms
Verb 1
to subject (steel or iron) to the austempering heat-treatment process, producing a bainitic (ausferritic) microstructure to improve toughness and mechanical properties.
Metallurgists often austemper ductile iron to improve its toughness.
Synonyms
Last updated: 2025/11/21 23:58