Stainless Steel Bright Annealing Tube Process Makes Its Surface Bright

The stainless steel tubing is generally produced by a cold-drawing process. A subsequent annealing process is required to eliminate residue stress and obtain improved softness and ductility.

Bright Annealing is a surface treatment technique commonly used in the manufacturing of Stainless Steel BA pipes. The main purpose is to remove grease and other contaminants on the surface of the steel pipe by high-temperature annealing and argon cleaning and make the surface of the steel pipe shine.

During the annealing process, the steel pipe is placed in an argon-filled environment and annealed at high temperatures. Argon is an inert gas that can effectively protect the surface of steel pipes from oxidation and corrosion. At the same time, high-temperature annealing can cause the oil grains on the surface of the steel pipe to deform and burn, and further clean the surface of the steel pipe. This cleaning process can produce a bright effect, so it is called bright annealing (also known as luminous annealing).

If the annealing is conducted in a protective atmosphere such as pure hydrogen or dissociated ammonia, the formation of an oxide layer on the tubing exterior and interior surfaces can be completely avoided.

The stainless steel tube maintains its original metallic luster and good surface finish after annealing, so no subsequent pickling process is required.

Compared with mechanical polishing, chemical polishing, and electrolytic polishing, the brightness of the surface obtained by BA bright annealing may be slightly insufficient, with some foggy surface feeling. However, it can ensure that there is no external contamination on the surface of the steel pipe, and its effect is also related to the content of argon and the number of heating times.