What does normalizing a welded or machined piece of steel accomplish?

• A. Normalizing removes stresses locked into the material.
• B. Normalizing increases surface hardness.
• C. Normalizing coats the surface with an oxide.
• D. Normalizing reduces the metal's carbon content.

Answer: (A)

Normalizing is heating steel above its critical temperature and letting it cool in air. This process drives the steel through an austenite stage and then produces a refined, uniform grain structure as it cools, which helps relieve internal stresses that were locked in during welding or machining. That stress relief is the main benefit, reducing distortion and improving toughness and consistency in the material. It does not aim to harden the surface like a quench-based process, it doesn’t coat the surface with oxide, and it doesn’t change the metal’s carbon content.