Patent ID: 7625455

Claim:
A method of heat treating stainless steel in the form of blanks, piping, tubing, strip or wire-like material, after rolling said material, and in a heat treatment furnace at a temperature higher than about 900° C., said method comprising the steps of: preheating the stainless steel to a temperature of 150-1000° C. in a first heating stage by flames from burners, wherein the flames are directed towards the surface of the material to impinge on the surface, wherein the burners situated in the preheating stage provide flames that are two-directional to impinge on opposite surfaces of the stainless steel and are supplied with a liquid or gaseous fuel that burns with the aid of an oxidizing gas that contains at least 85% gaseous oxygen by volume; holding the stainless steel during preheating for a first heating time period of 0.1-60 seconds to acquire on the surface of the stainless steel at least some degree of oxidation on the surface of the material to increase a surface emission factor and to provide a higher heat yield between a furnace atmosphere and the stainless steel during heating in a following final heating stage; and heating the stainless steel in a furnace in a following final heating stage for a second heating time by means of burners situated in a furnace and that are supplied with a liquid or a gaseous fuel and an oxidizing gas.