Feasibility of Sea and Coconut Shells as Substitute to Barium Carbonate (BaCO3) in Small Scale Foundry and Heat Treatment Shop in Nigeria.

Barium Carbonate (BaCo3) is commonly used as an energizer in pack-carburization. Investigation was therefore carried out to establish the suitability of sea shell and coconut shell as energizers in pack-carburization of mild steel. Samples were carburized at 950°C in carburization compounds containing charcoal and energizing aterials at predetermined proportions. The results obtained showed that sea shell was a more effective energizer than the coconut shell and compared favourably with barium carbonate. Sea shell showed 82.5% efficiency compared with BaCO3 and 134.7% with limestone (CaCO3) at 950° carburizing temperature. It was found that 30% sea shell addition to charcoal gave optimal carburization case depth which was 2.8 times the values obtained from 100% charcoal. However, there was no significant difference between 100% charcoal and compounds containing various proportions of coconut shell in the carburizing kinetics.