JP6093212B2 - Manufacturing method of steel material excellent in cold workability or machinability - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a steel material having excellent cold workability or machinability used for manufacturing various parts such as automobile parts, bearings, and construction machine parts.

  High carbon steel is used for various parts such as automobile parts, bearings, and construction machine parts. Usually, hot rolled material is formed into a predetermined shape by cold working, cutting, etc., and then quenched and tempered. The final strength adjustment is performed by performing the process, and the manufacturing is performed. The cold workability and machinability of hot-rolled materials are affected by the shape of carbides precipitated in high-carbon steel. Interworkability and machinability deteriorate. Therefore, when cold-working or cutting the hot-rolled material, a process of spheroidizing the carbide by annealing the hot-rolled material (spheroidizing annealing) is performed.

In general, in spheroidizing annealing, (1) a method of slowly cooling a steel material to a slightly higher temperature (for example, 760 to 780 ° C.) of A _c1 point (about 730 ° C.) for 1 to 2 hours, and (2) A _c1 A method of repeating heating and cooling between 20-30 ° C. above and below the point, (3) a method of heating to a temperature of 680-700 ° C. after cold working, or a method of tempering at a temperature of 680-700 ° C. after quenching, (4) A method of cooling from a temperature of 760 to 780 ° C. immediately above the transformation point to a temperature of 700 ° C. and holding at this temperature for about 3 hours and then air cooling is adopted.

  By the way, as a high carbon steel used for bearing steel etc., SUJ2 steel is typical, and this SUJ2 steel is also used after spheroidizing annealing. SUJ2 steel has a high C content of 0.95 to 1.10% and a high Cr content of 1.30 to 1.60%.

On the other hand, spheroidizing annealing is also applied to steel materials in which the amount of Cr is reduced while the amount of C is high (Patent Documents 1, 2, etc.). Patent Document 1 C: 1.41%, Cr: against 0.64% for steel D, and retention heated to 30 to 120 minutes until the first retention temperature of Ac ₁ -100 ° C. to Ac _1, then Ac A spheroidizing annealing method is disclosed in which the steel is heated to a second holding temperature of ₁ + 5 ° C. or higher and then cooled. In Patent Document 2, C: 0.40 to 0.80% by weight, Cr: 0.80% by weight or less of the steel for bearings, after the treatments (1) to (3) below, (4) to (5) A spheroidizing annealing method is disclosed in which the above treatment is repeated once or more and then cooled.

(1) A Rapid cooling is performed after heating and holding at ₃ points or more.
(2) A ₃ point + (5-30) reheating kept at a temperature in the range of ° C..
(3) A ₁ point-held at a temperature range of (5 to 30) ° C.
(4) Hold in a temperature range of (A ₁ point + 5) to (A ₃ point + 30) ° C.
(5) A ₁ point-held in a temperature range of (5 to 30) ° C.

JP-A-4-333527 JP-A-4-362123

  High Cr alloy steels such as the SUJ2 steel can be spheroidized and annealed relatively stably, whereas high C low Cr steels with reduced Cr while maintaining a high C content are subject to spheroidizing annealing. It is difficult to do stably. For example, when a wire coil is processed in a furnace and subjected to spheroidizing annealing, even if the spheroidizing annealing is partially succeeded, a portion where the spheroidizing annealing fails may occur, resulting in a decrease in yield. And in order to succeed in spheroidizing annealing in all places, there is a problem that the condition setting of the furnace becomes very severe. It is difficult to stably spheroidize high C low Cr steel even by the methods of Patent Documents 1 and 2.

  The present invention has been made paying attention to the above-mentioned circumstances, and its purpose is that when subjecting a steel material to spheroidizing annealing to ensure cold workability or machinability, the target steel has a high C low The purpose is to establish a technique that can stably spheroidize annealing even with Cr steel.

The production method of the present invention that can achieve the above object is: C: 0.7 to 1.5% (meaning mass%, hereinafter the same), Cr: less than 0.9% (not including 0%) Is a method for producing a steel material excellent in cold workability or machinability by spheroidizing annealing, and the spheroidizing annealing includes a first stage heat treatment, followed by a second stage heat treatment, The conditions of these first-stage heat treatment and second-stage heat treatment are summarized as follows.
(1) First-stage heat treatment Temperature increase rate: less than 400 ° C./hr Heating temperature: A ₁ point + 10 ° C. to A ₁ point + 30 ° C. and less than 780 ° C. Heating holding time: 3-8 hours Cooling rate: A ₁ point ~ A ₁ point-20 ° C temperature range 3 ° C / hr or less Cooling end temperature: A ₁ point -35 ° C or less (2) Second stage heat treatment Heating rate: less than 400 ° C / hr Heating temperature: A ₁ point +5 ° C. to a ₁ point + 25 ° C. and is and 780 ° C. lower than the heating holding time: 0.5 to 2 hours cooling rate: the temperature range of a ₁ point -15 ° C. to a ₁ point -35 ℃ 5 ℃ / hr or less

  The steel material may further contain Si: 0.001 to 0.7%, Mn: 0.1 to 2.0%, Al: 0.001 to 0.1%, the balance being iron and inevitable It may be an impurity. The inevitable impurities include, for example, P: 0.05% or less (not including 0%), S: 0.001 to 0.05%, N: 0.015% or less (not including 0%), etc. is there. The steel materials are further Cu: 0.25% or less (not including 0%), Ni: 0.25% or less (not including 0%), Mo: 0.25% or less (not including 0%) And B: may contain at least one selected from the group consisting of 0.01% or less (not including 0%), Ti: 0.2% or less (not including 0%), Nb : May contain at least one selected from the group consisting of 0.2% or less (not including 0%) and V: 0.5% or less (not including 0%).

  According to the present invention, since a specific two-stage heat treatment method is adopted, even a high C low Cr steel can be spheroidized and annealed stably and reliably, and the yield can be increased.

As a result of intensive studies to solve the above problems, the present inventors conducted heat treatment in two stages so as to sandwich a process of cooling to a temperature sufficiently lower than the A ₁ transformation point. The heat treatment conditions of the first stage heat treatment are relatively strong, and the second stage heat treatment is relatively weak and controlled within a certain range of conditions to ensure stable and reliable even for high C low Cr steels. The inventors have found that spheroidizing annealing can be performed and completed the present invention. Hereinafter, after explaining the steel material which this invention method makes object, this invention method is demonstrated.

1. Target Steel The present invention is intended for high C low Cr steel. The high C low Cr steel has a problem of stably performing spheroidizing annealing. Specifically, the high C low Cr steel contains C in an amount of 0.7 to 1.5% (meaning mass%, hereinafter the same) and Cr less than 0.9% (not including 0%).

  The C is an element necessary for ensuring the strength of the steel material (that is, the strength of the final product), and has an important influence on cold workability and machinability. In addition, since carbide is generated, it must be taken into consideration when designing the spheroidizing annealing method. The amount of C is preferably 0.8% or more. However, if C is contained excessively, the strength becomes too high and cold workability and machinability deteriorate, so the upper limit was set. The amount of C is preferably 1.2% or less.

  Cr is an element that affects the difficulty of spheroidization. In the present invention, even when this Cr is reduced to less than 0.9%, a spheroidizing method is designed for the purpose of stably and surely spheroidizing, and it is essential to specify the Cr amount. According to the present invention, even when Cr is 0.8% or less, or 0.6% or less, particularly 0.4% or less, and even 0.3% or less, spheroidization can be reliably performed. The amount may be 0.1% or less. Note that Cr is an element that acts to improve the hardenability of the steel material and increase the strength of the final product, and therefore may be contained in a large amount within a range satisfying less than 0.9%. For example, the Cr amount may be 0.01% or more, preferably 0.05% or more, and more preferably 0.1% or more.

  The steel components to be considered in designing the annealing method in the present invention are the above-described C amount and Cr amount, but the steel materials actually used in the annealing method of the present invention usually have Si, Mn, and Al within the following ranges. In addition, it contains. The balance is not particularly limited, but may be iron and inevitable impurities. The addition amount of Si, Mn, and Al and the reason for the addition are as follows.

  Si is an element that is preferably contained as a deoxidizing element and to increase the strength of the final product by solid solution hardening. The Si content is preferably 0.001% or more, more preferably 0.05% or more, still more preferably 0.1% or more, and particularly preferably 0.2% or more. However, if the amount of Si exceeds 0.7%, the strength is excessively increased and cold workability may be deteriorated. Accordingly, the Si content is preferably 0.7% or less, more preferably 0.60% or less, and still more preferably 0.50% or less.

  Mn is an element that effectively acts to improve hardenability and increase the strength of the final product. In order to effectively exhibit such an action, the content is preferably 0.1% or more, more preferably 0.3% or more, and still more preferably 0.50% or more. However, when it contains excessively, intensity | strength rises excessively and cold workability may deteriorate. Accordingly, the Mn content is preferably 2.0% or less, more preferably 1.5% or less, still more preferably 1.2% or less, and particularly preferably 1.0% or less.

Al is an element that acts as a deoxidizing element, fixes solid solution N present in the steel as AlN, and improves cold workability. In order to effectively exert such effects, the Al content is preferably 0.001% or more, more preferably 0.005% or more, and still more preferably 0.01% or more. However, when the amount of Al is excessive, Al ₂ O ₃ is excessively generated in the steel material, and cold workability may be deteriorated. Accordingly, the Al content is preferably 0.1% or less, more preferably 0.08% or less, and still more preferably 0.05% or less.

Examples of the inevitable impurities include P, S, and N. The reasons for these limitations and the allowable contents thereof are as follows, for example.
P is an element inevitably contained in the steel material, and when grain boundary segregation occurs, it causes ductile deterioration. Therefore, the P content is preferably 0.05% or less (excluding 0%), more preferably 0.04% or less, and still more preferably 0.03% or less.

S is an element inevitably contained in the steel material, and is present as MnS in the steel material, which may deteriorate ductility and cold workability. Accordingly, the S amount is preferably 0.05% or less, more preferably 0.04% or less, and still more preferably 0.03% or less.
On the other hand, S also has the effect | action which improves the machinability of steel materials. Therefore, the S amount is preferably 0.001% or more, more preferably 0.002% or more, and further preferably 0.003% or more.

  N is an element inevitably contained in the steel material. When N is present as solid solution N in the steel material, the hardness increases due to strain aging and the ductility decreases, and cold workability may be deteriorated. Accordingly, the N content is preferably 0.015% or less (excluding 0%), more preferably 0.013% or less, and still more preferably 0.010% or less.

The steel material may further include (1) Cu, Ni, Mo, and B, and / or (2) Ti, Nb, V, and the like.
In the case of (1), Cu: 0.25% or less (not including 0%), Ni: 0.25% or less (not including 0%), Mo: 0.25% or less (not including 0%) And B: at least one selected from the group consisting of 0.01% or less (not including 0%) is contained. These elements are elements that effectively act to improve the hardenability of the steel material and increase the strength of the final product, and may be contained alone or in combination of two or more. From the viewpoint of surely exhibiting the above-mentioned action, it is preferable to contain Cu 0.01% or more, Ni 0.01% or more, Mo 0.01% or more, and B 0.001% or more, more preferably Cu is 0.03% or more, Ni is 0.03% or more, Mo is 0.03% or more, and B is 0.0015% or more. However, when it contains excessively, intensity | strength will become high too much and cold workability may deteriorate. Therefore, the upper limit may be limited more than the above range. For example, Cu is 0.15% or less, Ni is 0.15% or less, Mo is 0.2% or less, and B is 0.008% or less. Is preferred.

  In the case of (2), Ti: 0.2% or less (not including 0%), Nb: 0.2% or less (not including 0%), and V: 0.5% or less (not including 0%) And at least one selected from the group consisting of: These elements are all elements that combine with N present in the steel material to form nitrides and reduce solute N, thereby reducing deformation resistance and improving cold workability. These elements are preferably used alone or in combination of two or more. In order to effectively exert such an effect, it is preferable that Ti is 0.02% or more, Nb is 0.02% or more, and V is 0.05% or more, more preferably, Ti is 0.04% or more. , Nb is 0.05% or more, and V is 0.08% or more. However, when it contains excessively, the nitride formed may increase deformation resistance and may deteriorate cold workability. Therefore, the upper limit may be limited more than the above range. For example, it is preferable that Ti is 0.1% or less, Nb is 0.1% or less, and V is 0.25% or less.

2. 2. Manufacturing Method 2.1 Spheroidizing Annealing The present invention is surely spheroidizing annealing and cold workability and machinability of the above-described high C low Cr steel, which is difficult to stably spheroidizing annealing. It is an invention that improves the above. The spheroidizing annealing method employed in the manufacturing method of the present invention is characterized in that the heat treatment is performed in two stages, the first stage heat treatment is designed to be relatively strong, and the second stage heat treatment is designed to be relatively weak. doing. A more detailed description of the first stage heat treatment is as follows.

2.1.1 First-stage heat treatment In the first-stage heat treatment, first, the steel material is heated at a heating rate of less than 400 ° C./hr. This heating is performed to a temperature of A ₁ point + 10 ° C. or higher and A ₁ point + 30 ° C. or lower (however, less than 780 ° C.), and held at this temperature for 3 to 8 hours. Next, cooling is started, and in this cooling, a temperature range of A ₁ point or lower and A ₁ point −20 ° C. or higher is gradually cooled at a rate of 3 ° C./hr or lower. Cooling is carried out to A ₁ point -35 ° C. or lower. By this first heat treatment, the original pearlite structure is made into a certain degree of spheroidized structure, and the grain boundary cementite can be greatly reduced. Therefore, a spheroidized structure can be reliably obtained at all sites by the subsequent second-stage heat treatment. The point A ₁ is the transformation temperature from the austenite + cementite phase to the austenite + cementite + ferrite phase, which can be purchased from comprehensive thermodynamic calculation software (Thermo-Calc. CRC Research Institute, database is TTLFE). The value obtained by inputting the chemical composition of the steel material.

  The reason why the rate of temperature rise of the steel material is set in the above range in the first heat treatment is that if the temperature is exceeded, the temperature tends to overshoot and the heating temperature and time are affected. The temperature rising rate is preferably 300 ° C./hr or less, more preferably 200 ° C./hr or less. If the temperature raising rate is too slow, the production efficiency is lowered. Therefore, the rate of temperature rise is, for example, 5 ° C./hr or more, preferably 10 ° C./hr or more, more preferably 20 ° C./hr or more.

The reason why the heating temperature and the heating time in the first stage are set in the above-mentioned range is that the undissolved pearlite and reticulated cementite are eliminated by this heating, and some cementite remains. If the heating temperature is too low or the heating time is too short, undissolved pearlite or reticulated cementite remains, and a part with insufficient spheroidization occurs. On the other hand, if the heating temperature is too high or the heating time is too long, the cementite is excessively melted, and pearlite is likely to be generated by the subsequent cooling. As a result, a portion with insufficient spheroidization occurs. The heating temperature is preferably A ₁ point + 12 ° C. to A ₁ point + 28 ° C., more preferably A ₁ point + 15 ° C. to A ₁ point + 25 ° C. Moreover, this heating temperature becomes like this. Preferably it is 770 degrees C or less, More preferably, it is 765 degrees C or less. The heating time is preferably 4 to 7 hours.

  The reason why the cooling rate of the first stage is set in the above range is to suppress the generation of fine reproduction pearlite. When fine regenerated pearlite is generated, it is excessively melted during the second stage of heating, and pearlite is likely to be generated by subsequent cooling, and a portion with insufficient spheroidization is generated. The cooling rate is preferably 2 ° C./hr or less. The lower limit of the cooling rate can be set as appropriate, but may be, for example, 0.1 ° C./hr or more, preferably 0.5 ° C./hr or more, or 1 ° C./hr or more.

The reason why the first stage cooling end temperature is set in the above range is to prevent the second stage heating from entering while the austenite remains. If the second stage of heating is entered with austenite remaining, the cementite is excessively melted, and pearlite is likely to be generated by the subsequent cooling, and a portion with insufficient spheroidization occurs. The cooling end temperature may be A ₁ point −37 ° C. or lower, or A ₁ point −40 ° C. or lower. The lower limit of the cooling end temperature is not particularly set, but may be, for example, A ₁ point −100 ° C. or higher, preferably A ₁ point −50 ° C. or higher, from the viewpoint of production efficiency.

2.1.2 Second-stage heat treatment In the second-stage heat treatment, after completion of the first-stage cooling, the steel material is heated at a heating rate of less than 400 ° C./hr. This heating is performed to a temperature of A ₁ point + 5 ° C. or higher and A ₁ point + 25 ° C. or lower (however, less than 780 ° C.) and held at this temperature for 0.5 to 2 hours. Next, cooling is started, and in this cooling, the temperature range of A ₁ point −15 ° C. or lower and A ₁ point −35 ° C. or higher is gradually cooled at a rate of 5 ° C./hr or lower. By performing the second-stage heat treatment, which is relatively weaker than the first-stage heat treatment, it is possible to reliably spheroidize even at a site where spheroidization is difficult while preventing regeneration of pearlite.

  The reason why the temperature increase rate of the steel material is set in the above range in the second heat treatment is that if the temperature is exceeded, the temperature tends to overshoot and the heating temperature and time are affected. The temperature rising rate is preferably 300 ° C./hr or less, more preferably 200 ° C./hr or less. If the temperature raising rate is too slow, the production efficiency is lowered. Therefore, the rate of temperature rise is, for example, 5 ° C./hr or more, preferably 10 ° C./hr or more, more preferably 20 ° C./hr or more.

The reason why the heating temperature and the heating time of the second stage are set in the above-mentioned range is that undiluted pearlite is eliminated by this heating while a large amount of cementite remains. When the heating temperature is too low or the heating time is too short, a portion where undissolved pearlite remains is generated, and a portion with insufficient spheroidization is generated. On the other hand, if the heating temperature is too high or the heating time is too long, a portion in which cementite is excessively dissolved is generated, and pearlite is easily generated by subsequent cooling, and a portion in which spheroidization is insufficient is generated. The heating temperature is preferably A ₁ point + 7 ° C. to A ₁ point + 23 ° C., more preferably A ₁ point + 10 ° C. to A ₁ point + 20 ° C. Moreover, this heating temperature becomes like this. Preferably it is 760 degrees C or less, More preferably, it is 755 degrees C or less. The heating time is preferably 1.0 to 2 hours.

  The reason why the cooling rate of the second stage is set in the above range is to suppress the generation of regenerated pearlite. When regenerated perlite is generated, the spheroidization becomes insufficient. The cooling rate is preferably 4.5 ° C./hr or less, more preferably 4.0 ° C./hr or less. The lower limit of the cooling rate can be set as appropriate. For example, it may be 0.5 ° C./hr or higher, preferably 1.0 ° C./hr or higher, or 2 ° C./hr or higher.

2.2 Step before spheroidizing annealing In manufacturing the steel material of the present invention, the step before spheroidizing annealing is not particularly limited, and for example, a normal method for manufacturing a steel material may be followed. For example, a steel material that has been adjusted to have a predetermined component is cast, and if necessary, the steel material that is hot-rolled after being subjected to split rolling can be used. Moreover, even if it is the steel material obtained by the other method, as long as it is the steel material in which the spheroidization of the carbide | carbonized_material is not made, any can be used.

  The steel material spheroidized and annealed as described above is excellent in cold workability and machinability. Therefore, it can be easily formed into a predetermined shape by cold working (particularly cold forging) or cutting. This formed body is subjected to final strength adjustment such as quenching and tempering, and becomes a steel part. The present invention is extremely useful for manufacturing various parts such as automobile parts such as bearings and construction machine parts.

  EXAMPLES Hereinafter, the present invention will be described more specifically with reference to examples. However, the present invention is not limited by the following examples, but may be appropriately modified within a range that can meet the purpose described above and below. Of course, it is possible to implement them, and they are all included in the technical scope of the present invention.

Experimental Example 21 steel wires (1 ton) having a diameter of 15 mm were produced per steel type by hot rolling steel materials (steel types A to I) having the composition shown in Table 1 below. Insert seven wire coils per stage (layer) into a three-stage (layer) stacking batch furnace, and the first stage under the conditions shown in Table 2 below. After performing the (first) heat treatment, the second (second) heat treatment was performed.

  After the heat treatment, six wire coils were selected without deviation from the 21 wire coils, and used as evaluation coils. For one coil, a sample is taken from the end, and the D / 8 position (D is the diameter) of the cross section is observed over the entire circumference, and the LC (Lamellar Content) number and CN (carbide network) in the observation part are observed. : Carbide net) The maximum number was determined according to ASTM A892-88. This evaluation was performed on all six selected coils, and the largest number was the LC number and CN number of the steel type. The results are shown in Table 2. LC is a parameter indicating the ratio of layered cementite. The smaller the value, the less layered cementite and the better the degree of spheroidization. CN is a parameter indicating the proportion of cementite (mainly pro-eutectoid cementite) at grain boundaries, and the smaller the value, the less the cementite at grain boundaries and the better the degree of spheroidization. When both LC and CN are small, it can be evaluated that a good spheroidized structure is obtained, and therefore it can be determined that the cold workability and machinability are improved.

No. In No. 13, since the heating conditions of the first stage heat treatment were too strong, a portion in which cementite was dissolved more than necessary was generated, and pearlite was easily generated by subsequent cooling, resulting in a deterioration of the LC number. No. In No. 14, since the heating conditions of the first stage heat treatment were too weak, a portion where pearlite or reticulated cementite remained was generated, resulting in insufficient spheroidization and worsening of the CN number. No. In No. 15, the cooling rate of the first-stage heat treatment was too high, so that a portion where fine regenerated pearlite was generated was generated, and the LC number was deteriorated. No. In No. 16, the cooling end temperature of the first stage heat treatment is too high and the second stage heat is entered while leaving the austenite portion, so that the cementite is melted too much by this second stage heat treatment and regenerated by subsequent cooling. Perlite was easily generated and the LC number was deteriorated. No. In No. 17, since the heating conditions of the first stage heat treatment and the heating conditions of the second stage heat treatment were both weak, a portion where spheroidizing annealing could not be performed occurred, and both the LC number and CN number deteriorated. No. In No. 18, the heating condition of the second stage heat treatment was too strong, so that a portion in which cementite was too dissolved was generated, and the LC number deteriorated because it became regenerated pearlite by subsequent cooling. No. For No. 19, the heating condition of the second stage heat treatment was too weak, so that a part where undissolved pearlite remained was generated, and the LC number was deteriorated. No. In No. 20, the cooling rate of the second-stage heat treatment was too high, so that a portion that became regenerated pearlite was generated, and the LC number deteriorated. No. Since No. 21 is a conventional steel with a high Cr content and not the target steel under the heat treatment conditions, both the LC number and the CN number deteriorated.
No. In Nos. 1 to 12, the LC number and the CN number were both 1 because the two-stage heat treatment was performed under the appropriate conditions for the high C low Cr steel.

Claims (3)

C: 0.7 to 1.5% (meaning mass%; hereinafter the same) , Cr: less than 0.9% (not including 0%) , Si: 0.001 to 0.7 %, Mn: 0.1 to 2.0%, and Al: 0.001 to 0.1% , the balance is iron and inevitable impurities, P: 0.05% or less (0% as the inevitable impurities) ), S: 0.001 to 0.05%, N: 0.015% or less (not including 0%), and spheroidizing and annealing a steel material including a pearlite structure, A method for producing a steel material having excellent machinability, wherein the spheroidizing annealing is composed of a first-stage heat treatment followed by a second-stage heat treatment, and conditions for the first-stage heat treatment and the second-stage heat treatment. Is a method for producing a steel material having excellent cold workability or machinability as follows.
(1) First-stage heat treatment Temperature increase rate: less than 400 ° C./hr Heating temperature: A ₁ point + 10 ° C. to A ₁ point + 30 ° C. and less than 780 ° C. Heating holding time: 3-8 hours Cooling rate: A ₁ point ~ A ₁ point-20 ° C temperature range 3 ° C / hr or less Cooling end temperature: A ₁ point -35 ° C or less (2) Second stage heat treatment Heating rate: less than 400 ° C / hr Heating temperature: A ₁ point +5 ° C. to a ₁ point + 25 ° C. and is and 780 ° C. lower than the heating holding time: 0.5 to 2 hours cooling rate: the temperature range of a ₁ point -15 ° C. to a ₁ point -35 ℃ 5 ℃ / hr or less The steel material is further
Cu: 0.25% or less (excluding 0%),
Ni: 0.25% or less (excluding 0%),
The manufacturing method according to claim 1 , comprising at least one selected from the group consisting of Mo: 0.25% or less (excluding 0%) and B: 0.01% or less (not including 0%). The steel material is further
Ti: 0.2% or less (excluding 0%),
The production according to claim 1 or 2 , comprising at least one selected from the group consisting of Nb: 0.2% or less (not including 0%) and V: 0.5% or less (not including 0%). Method.