The process of heating steel or iron to a high temperature to transform its crystal structure into a stronger form.
Present participle of austenite, derived from William Chandler Roberts-Austen's name combined with the -ize suffix (meaning to make or subject to) and -ing (indicating ongoing action).
The word 'austenite' was literally named after a person—Roberts-Austen—making it one of the rare instances where an entire materials science process carries a scientist's surname. This happens in metallurgy more than you'd expect, commemorating the people who discovered these hidden states of matter.
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