This study has been conducted to establish the carburizing characteristics of low carbon alloy steels with varying amount of Ni element gas-carburized for 2 hours at $930^{\circ}C$ in an atmosphere of 94% $N_2$-6% $C_3H_8$ gas mixture with some changes in gas pressure passing through the diffusion plate in the fluidized-bed furnace. The results obtained from the experiment are as follows : (1) Optical micrograph has shown that the carburized layer consists of retained austenite and plate martensite and that retained austenite increases as the pressure of gas mixture passing through the diffusion plate as well as Ni content increase. (2) Chemical analysis has shown that carbon potential increases and carburizability is also improved due to a less degree of fluidization as the pressures of gas mixtures passing through the diffusion plate increase, resulting in, however, a severe formation of soot, and the gas pressure is necessarily regulated. (3) It has been revealed that carbon concentration hardness values at a given distance measured from the surface within the carburized case. Increase with increasing the pressure of gas mixtures passing through the diffusion plate and decrease with increasing Ni content. (4) The effective case depth has been shown to almost linearly increase as the pressure of gas mixtures passing through the diffusion plate is increased and to decrease with increasing Ni content.

SCM 21 and D.P steel were carburized in vacuum using prophane at a temperature ranging from 1228k to 1308k under a gas pressure ranging from 21.3kpa to 61.8kpa, and the following results were obrained. 1) D.P. steel has considerable efficiency in depressing the grain growth during the high temperature carburizing and it has fine structure even at 1268k for 14.4ks when carburizied. Therefore this steel is expected to be suitable for vacuum carburizing at a high temperature. 2) Case depth was increased as the carburizing temperature increases and it was 3.2mm at max, temperature of 1308k, for max, time of 14.4ks and under max, pressure of 61.8kpa. Thus vacuum-carburizing was considered effective for the materials which need case depth, which is necessary for machine structure use. 3) The rate of case depth of SCM 21 was faster than D.P. steel under same carburizing conditions and the increasing rate of the case depth was constant. 4) Case depth was increased as the gas pressure becomes high under same carburizing temperature. 5) Case carbon concentration, $C_s$, of SCM 21 obeys to a formula, $$C_s=kt^{1/2}+C_0$$ Where k is $2.15{\times}10^{-2}$($wt%.S^{-1/2}$) and this value is a little bit lower than that of SNCM 815.

우주항공시대에 본격적으로 진입하면서 새로운 기능을 갖는 신소재를 성공적으로 개발해 내고 있는 선진국에서 활용 개발하고 있는 열처리 프로세서의 현상과 보다 연구개발되어야 할 열처리 분야의 과제에 대해 소개하므로써 국내 열처리 분야의 진로에 도움이 될 내용이 제시되었다.