Boronize

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To coat or treat a metal or material with boron to harden or strengthen its surface
2. To subject something to a process involving boron, typically to improve its hardness or wear resistance
3. To apply a boron-containing treatment to a substance in order to enhance its mechanical or structural properties

Etymology: Boron takes its name from borax, the mineral it was first found in. Borax reached European languages through Medieval Latin, from Arabic "buraq" and before that Persian "burah." English chemists then named the element boron by analogy with carbon, adding the "-on" ending used for non-metallic elements. Boron itself is a metalloid, so the name reflects its chemical behaviour rather than any metallic quality. "Boronize" is a verb built from boron and the suffix "-ize," which turns a noun into a verb meaning "to treat with" or "to make into" that substance. In metallurgy, it means to diffuse boron into the surface of a metal, usually steel, to make that surface much harder and more wear-resistant. The process is also called boriding, and the verb describes the treatment rather than the element.

Synonyms: boron-treat