Technical Specifications
Chemical Composition
- Carbon (C): 0.35–0.45% – Provides base tool steel strength and hardenability.
- Silicon (Si): 0.20–0.40% – Enhances strength and machinability.
- Manganese (Mn): 1.30–1.60% – Improves toughness and ductility.
- Chromium (Cr): 1.80–2.10% – Offers improved wear resistance and hardenability.
- Nickel (Ni): 0.90–1.20% – Enhances toughness and through-hardening capability.
- Molybdenum (Mo): 0.15–0.25% – Provides additional strength and temperature resistance.
- Phosphorus (P): ≤ 0.030% – Controls brittleness and improves quality.
- Sulfur (S): ≤ 0.030% – Maintains good machinability.
Treatment
- Pre-Hardening / Annealing: Typically soft annealed at 710-740 °C followed by slow cooling to achieve approx. 235 HB for machining readiness.
- Hardening: Austenitise at around 840-870 °C then quench in oil or suitable medium depending on section size.
- Tempering: Immediately temper after quenching, typically between 500-650 °C to balance hardness and toughness.
- Finishing / Nitriding Options: After heat treatment the steel may be nitrided or flame-hardened for enhanced wear resistance and superior surface finish.
- Polishing & Machining: Excellent polishability and machining characteristics make it ideal for tooling requiring high surface finish and dimensional accuracy.
