HEAT TREATMENT

OF UDDEHOLM
TOOL STEELS
© UDDEHOLMS AB
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without permission of the copyright holder.

This information is based on our present state of knowledge and is intended to provide
general notes on our products and their uses. It should not therefore be construed as a
warranty of specific properties of the products described or a warranty for fitness for a
particular purpose.

Classified according to EU Directive 1999/45/EC

For further information see our “Material Safety Data Sheets”.

Edition 10, 04.2018

 CONTENTS

What is tool steel? 4

Hardening and tempering 4
Dimensional and shape stability 11
Suface treatment 12
Testing of mechanical properties 14
Some words of advice to tool designers 15
Hardness after hardening and tempering 17
Hardness conversion table 18

Cover photos from left to right: Uddeholms AB/HÄRDtekno, Eifeler Werkzeuge Germany,
Böhler Uddeholm Czech Republic.
 Treatments | Heat treatment of Uddeholm tool steels

The purpose of this brochure is to More advanced materials easily

HARDENING
rovide a general idea of how tool result in lower maintenance costs,
steel is heat treated and how lighter parts, greater precision and AND TEMPERING
it behaves during this process. increased reliability. When a tool is hardened, many
Special attention is paid to hard- factors influence the result.
Uddeholm has concentrated its
ness, toughness and dimensional
tool steel range on high alloyed
stability. SOME THEORETICAL
types of steel, intended prima-
rily for purposes such as plastic
ASPECTS
moulding, blanking and forming, In soft annealed condition, most
WHAT IS die casting, extrusion, forging, of the carbide-forming alloying
TOOL STEEL? wood-working industry, recycling elements are bound up with
industry and component carbon in carbides.
Tool steels are high-quality steels
made to controlled chemical com- business. Powder metallurgy (PM) When the steel is heated up to
position and processed to develop steels are also included in the hardening temperature, the matrix
properties useful for working and range. is transformed from ferrite to
shaping of other materials. The Tool steel is normally delivered austenite. This means that the Iron
carbon content in tool steels may in the soft annealed condition; atoms change their position in the
range from as low as 0.1% to as this makes the material easy to atomic lattice and generate a new
high as more than 1.6% C and machine with cutting tools and it lattice with different crystallinity.
many are alloyed with alloying provides a microstructure suitable
elements such as chromium, for hardening. = Iron atoms
molybdenum and vanadium. = Possible positions for
The soft annealed microstructure carbon atoms
Tool steels are used for appli- consists of a soft matrix in which
cations such as blanking and carbides are embedded. See
forming, plastic moulding, die picture below.
casting, extrusion and forging.
In carbon steel, these carbides are
Alloy design, the manufacturing Iron carbides, while in alloyed
route of the steel and quality heat steel they are chromium (Cr),
treatment are key factors in order tungsten (W), molybdenum (Mo)
to develop tools or parts with the or vanadium (V) carbides, depen- 2.86 A
enhanced properties that only tool ding on the composition of the Unit cell in a ferrite crystal.
steel can offer. steel. Carbides are compounds Body centred cubic (BCC).

Benefits like durability, strength, of carbon and alloying elements

corrosion resistance and and are characterized by very high
high-tem-perature stability are hardness. Higher carbide content
also attractive for other purposes means a higher resistance to wear.
than pure tool applications. For Also non-carbide forming alloying
this reason, tool steel is a better elements are used in tool steel,
choice than construction or engi- such as cobalt (Co) and nickel (Ni)
neering steel for strategic compo- which are dissolved in the matrix.
nents in the different industries. Cobalt is normally used to 3.57 A
improve red hard-ness in high Unit cell in an austenite crystal.
speed steels, while nickel is used Face centred cubic (FCC).
to improve through-hardening
properties and also increase the
toughness in the hardened
conditions.
2.98 A

2.85 A
Uddeholm Dievar, soft
20µm Unit cell in a martensite crystal.
annealed structure.
Tetragonal.
4
 Treatments | Heat treatment of Uddeholm tool steels

Austenite has a higher solu- high temperature also affects the It is very important to have in
bility limit for carbon and alloying retained austenite. mind that hardness is the result of
elements, and the carbides will several different factors, such as
After one tempering at a high
dissolve into the matrix to some the amount of carbon in the mar-
temperature the microstructure
extent. In this way the matrix tensitic matrix, the micro-stresses
consists of tempered martensite,
acquires an alloying content of contained in the material, the
newly formed martensite, some
carbide-forming elements that amount of retained austenite and
retained austenite and carbides.
gives the hardening effect, without the precipitated carbides during
becoming coarse grained. Precipitated secondary (newly for- tempering.
med) carbides and newly formed
If the steel is quenched suffi- It is possible to make use of diffe-
martensite can increase hardness
ciently rapidly in the hardening rent combinations of these factors
during high temperature tempe-
process, the carbon atoms do that will result in the same hard-
ring. Typical of this is the so called
not have the time to reposition ness level. Each of these combi-
secondary hardening of e.g. high
themselves to allow the reforming nations corresponds to a different
speed steels and high alloyed tool
of ferrite from austenite, as in for heat treatment cycle, but certain
steels.
instance annealing. Instead, they hardness does not guarantee any
are fixed in positions where they Usually a certain hardness level is specific set of proper-ties of the
really do not have enough room, required for each individual app- material. The material properties
and the result is high micro-stres- lication of the steel, and therefore are determined by its
ses that contribute to increased heat treatment parameters are microstructure and this depends
hardness. This hard structure is chosen to some extent in order on the heat treatment cycle, and
called martensite. Thus, martensi- to achieve the desired hardness. not on the obtained hardness.
te can be seen as a forced solu-
Quality heat treatment delivers not
tion of carbon in ferrite.
only desired hardness but also
Hardness
When the steel is hardened, the optimized properties of the
matrix is not completely converted C material for the chosen
into martensite. There is always B application.
some austenite that remains in the D
Tool steels should always be at
structure and it is called retained
least double tempered. The
austenite. The amount increases
second tempering takes care
with increasing alloying content,
A of the newly formed martensite
higher hardening temperature,
Tempering temperature
during cooling after the first
longer soaking times and slower
tempering.
quenching. A = martensite tempering
B = carbide precipitation Three temperings are recommen-
After quenching, the steel has C = transformation of retained austenite to
martensite
ded in the following cases:
a microstructure consisting of
D = tempering diagram for high speed steel
martensite, retained austenite and • high speed steel with high
and high alloy tool steel
carbides. This structure contains A+B+C = D carbon content
inherent stresses that can easily • complex hot work tools,
The diagram shows the influence of
cause cracking. But this can be especially in the case of die
different factors on the secondary
prevented by reheating the steel hardening. casting dies
to a certain temperature, reducing
the stresses and transforming the • big moulds for plastic
retained austenite to an extent applications
that depends upon the reheating • when high dimension stability is
temperature. This reheating after a demand (such as in the case
hardening is called tempering. of gauges or tools for integrated
Hardening of tool steel should circuits)
always be followed immediately
by tempering.
It should be noted that tempering
at low temperatures only affects
the martensite, while tempering at
Uddeholm Dievar,
20µm
hardened structure.

5
 Treatments | Heat treatment of Uddeholm tool steels

STRESS RELIEVING with few exceptions cheaper than In the case of big tools with com-
Distortion due to hardening must making dimensional adjustments plex geometry a third preheating
be taken into account when a during finish machining of a hard- step close to the fully austenitic
tool is rough machined. Rough ened tool. region is recommended.
machining causes thermal and The correct work sequence before
mechanical stresses that will
HOLDING TIME AT
hardening operation is:
remain embedded in the material.
HARDENING TEMPERATURE
rough machining, stress relieving
This might not be significant on a and semi-finish machining. It is not possible to briefly state
symmetrical part of simple design, exact recommendations to cover
but can be of great importance HEATING TO all heating situations.
in an asymmetrical and complex HARDENING TEMPERATURE Factors such as furnace type,
machining, for example of one half As has already been explained, hardening temperature, the weight
of a die casting die. Here, stress stresses contained in the material of the charge in relation to the size
relieving heat treatment is always will produce distortion during heat of the furnace, the geometry of the
recommended. treatment. For this reason, thermal different parts in the charge, etc.,
This treatment is done after rough stresses during heating should be must be taken into consideration
machining and before hardening avoided. in each case.
and entails heating to 550–700°C The fundamental rule for heating The use of thermocouples per-
(1020–1300°F). The material to hardening temperature is mits an overview of the tempera-
should be heated until it has therefore, that it should take ture in the different areas of the
achieved a uniform temperature all place slowly, increasing just a various tools in the charge.
the way through, where it remains few degrees per minute. In
2–3 hours and then cooled slowly, The ramping step finishes when
every heat treatment, the heating
for example in a furnace. The rea- the core of the parts in the furnace
process is named ramping. The
son for a necessary slow cooling reach the chosen temperature.
ramping for hardening should be
is to avoid new stresses of thermal Then the temperature is maintai-
made in different steps, stop-
origin in the stress-free material. ned constant for a certain amount
ping the process at intermediate
of time. This is called holding time.
The idea behind stress relieving temperatures, commonly named
is that the yield strength of the preheating steps. The reason for The generally recommended
material at elevated temperatures this is to equalise the tempera- holding time is 30 minutes. In
is so low that the material cannot tures between the surface and the case of high speed steel, the
resist the stresses contained in the centre of the part. Typically holding time will be shorter when
it. The yield strength is exceeded choosen preheating temperatures the hardening temperature is over
and these stresses are released, are 600–650°C (1100–1200°F) and 1100°C (2000°F). If the holding
resulting in a greater or lesser 800–850°C (1450–1560°F). time is prolonged, microstructural
degree of plastic deformation. problems like grain growth can
arise.
The excuse that stress relieving
takes too much time is hardly valid
when the potential consequences
are considered. Rectifying a part
during semi-finish machining is

MPa

Yield strength

Residual stresses
contained in the material

Plastic
­deformation

Temperature The use of thermocouples gives an overview of the temperature in different areas
during heat treatment. Photo: Böhler Uddeholm Czech Republic

6
 Treatments | Heat treatment of Uddeholm tool steels

QUENCHING Temperature First it is cooled from the harde-

The choice between a fast and a ning temperature until the tempe-
AC3
slow quenching rate is usually a AC1
rature at the surface is just above
compromise. To get the best the Ms temperature. Then it must
microstructure and tool perfor- be held there until the temperature
mance the quenching rate should has been equalised between the
be rapid. To minimize distortion, surface and the core. After this,
a slow quenching rate is the cooling process continues.
recommended. This method permits the core
Core
and the surface to transform into
Slow quenching results in less martensite at more or less the
temperature difference between Surface
same time and diminishes thermal
the surface and the core of a part, stresses. Step quenching is also
and sections of different thickness a possibility when quenching in
will have a more uniform cooling MS vacuum furnaces.
rate.
The maximum cooling rate that
This is of great importance when can be obtained in a part
quenching through the martensite Martensite depends on the heat conductivity
range, below the Ms temperature. of the steel, the cooling capacity
Martensite formation leads to an of the quenching media and the
The quenching process as expressed in a
increase in volume and stresses CCT graph. cross-section of the part.
in the material. This is also the
reason why quenching should be Temperature
interrupted before room tempera- Air hardening is reserved for steel Hardening temperature
ture has been reached, nor­mally at with high hardenability, which in
50–70°C (120–160°F). most of the cases is due to the
Oil
However, if the quenching rate combined presence of manga-
Air
is too slow, especially with nese, chrome and molybdenum. Polymer Vacuum
Salt bath
­heavier cross-sections, unde- Risk of distortion and hardening MS
sirable ­transformations in the Water
cracks can be reduced by means
microstructure can take place, Room
of step quenching or martem- temperature
risking a poor tool performance. pering. In this process the material
Time
is quenched in two steps. Cooling rates for various media.

Temperature A poor quenching rate will lead to

carbide precipitation at the grain
boundaries in the core of the part,
AC3
and this is very detrimental to the
AC1
mechanical properties of the steel.
Also the obtained hardness at
Batch prepared for heat treatment. the surface of larger parts could
Photo: Böhler Uddeholm Czech Republic. be lower for tools with bigger
cross-sections than that for
Quenching media used for alloyed smaller parts, as the high amount
Core
steel nowadays are: hardening of heat that has to be transported
oil, polymer solutions, air and from the core through the surface
inert gas. It is still possible to find produces a self-tempering effect.
Surface
some heat treatment shops that
MS
use salt baths, but this technique
is disappearing due to environ-
mental aspects.
Martensite
Oil and polymer solutions are
Time
usually utilised for low alloyed Martempering or step-quenching.
steel and for tool steel with low
carbon contents.
7
 Treatments | Heat treatment of Uddeholm tool steels

SOME PRACTICAL ISSUES VACUUM TECHNOLOGY • When the furnace reaches a

At high temperature, steel is Vacuum technology is the most temperature of approx. 850°C
very likely to suffer oxidation and used technology nowadays for (1560°F), the effect of radiation
variations in the carbon content hardening of high alloyed steel. heating mechanisms will over-
(carburization or decarburization). shadow that of the
Vacuum heat treatment is a clean
Protected atmospheres and convection ones in the heat
process, so the parts do not need
vacuum technology are the transfer process. Therefore the
to be cleaned afterwards. It also
answer to these problems. Nitrogen pressure is lowered, in
offers a reliable process control
order to optimize the effects of
Decarburization results in low with high automation, low main-
radiation and convection heating
sur-face hardness and a risk of tenance and environmental friend-
mechanisms are negligible
cracking. liness. All these factors make
under these new physical condi-
vacuum technology especially
Carburization, on the other hand, tions. The new value of the
attractive for high-quality parts.
can result in two different nitrogen pressure is around
problems: 1–7 mbar. The reason for
• the first and easiest to identify is
the formation of a harder surface
layer, which can have negative Top gas flap Heating elements
effects
• the second possible problem is Heat exchanger
Furnace
retained austenite at the surface vessel

Retained austenite can in many

cases be confused with ferrite
when observ-ing it through the op-
tical micro-scope. These two pha-
ses also have similar hardness, Bottom gas flap
Cooling fan
and therefore, what at first sight
can be identified as a decarburi- Hot zone Convection fan
zation can in some cases be the
completely opposite problem.
Cooling phase, top cooling. Illustration from Schmetz GmbH Vacuum Furnaces, Germany.

The different steps in the functi- having this remaing pressure

oning of a vacuum furnace can is to avoid sublimation of the
schematically be listed as follows: alloying elements, i.e. to avoid
the loss of alloying elements
• When the furnace is closed
to the vacuum. This low
after charging operation,
pressure condition will be main-
air is pumped out from the
tained invariant during the last
heating chamber in order to
part of the heating process, as
avoid oxidation.
Batch type furnace with controlled well as during the holding time
atmosphere. Photo: Bodycote • An inert gas (most commonly at the chosen hardening
Stockholm, Sweden. Nitrogen) is injected into the temperature.
heating chamber until a pressure
For these reasons it is very
of around 1–1.5 bar is reached.
important that the atmosphere in
which the heat treatment takes • The heating system is started.
place does not affect the carbon The presence of the inert gas
content of the part. will make possible the heat
transfer process through
Wrapping in a hermetically closed
convection mechanisms. This is
stainless-steel foil also provides
the most efficient way to heat
some protection when heating
up the furnace to a temperature
in a muffle furnace. The steel
of approx. 850°C (1560°F). Hot zone with graphite insulation. Photo:
foil should be re-moved before
Schmetz GmbH Vacuum Furnaces, Germany.
quenching.

8
 Treatments | Heat treatment of Uddeholm tool steels

Vertical cooling

From top to bottom From bottom to top

Horizontal cooling

Cooling phase. Nitrogen gas stream

passes through the heating chamber
in different directions. Illustration from
Schmetz GmbH Vacuum Furnaces,
Germany.
From right to left From left to right

• The cooling down will be carried

out by a massive injection of
inert gas (most commonly
nitrogen) into the heating
chamber in alternating directions
and reaching the overpressure
that was previously chosen
when programming the
furnace. The maximum over-
pressure is a nominal charact-
eristic of each furnace and it
gives an idea of its cooling
capacity.

Charging operation. Photo: Böhler Uddeholm Czech Republic.

Vacuum furnace. Photo: Schmetz GmbH

Vacuum Furnaces, Germany.

9
 Treatments | Heat treatment of Uddeholm tool steels

TEMPERING When tempering at high tempera- tempering is usually needed.

The material should be tempered ture, other differences in proper-
The basic rule of quenching is to
immediately after quenching. ties are also noticeable, like
interrupt at 50–70°C (120–160°F).
Quenching should be stopped higher heat conductivity.
Therefore a certain amount of
at a temperature of 50–70°C Precipitation of secondary car-
austenite remains untransformed
(120–160°F) and tempering should bides will occur when tempering
when the material is ready to be
be done at once. If this is not highly alloyed steel at a high
tempered. When the material
possible, the material must be temperature. This will be detri-
cools after tem-pering, most of the
kept warm, e.g. in a special “hot mental to its corro-sion resistance
austenite is trans-formed to newly
cabinet” awaiting tempering. but will give to it somewhat higher
formed martensite (untempered).
Please, notice that the stresses wear resistance. If the tool is to
A second tempering gives the
contained in the as-quenched be electrical discharge machined
material optimum toughness at
material can result in breakage (EDM) or coated, high-temper-
the chosen hardness level.
of the crystalline structure and ature tempering is necessary.
the formation of cracks if the
HOLDING TIMES
tempering is not done imme- HOW MANY TEMPERS IN CONNECTION WITH
diately after the quenching ARE REQUIRED? TEMPERING
process. This breakage of the Two tempers are generally recom- Here there is also a general rule,
crystalline structure can take mended for tool steel, except in applicable in most of the cases:
place in a violent way. Therefore the cases of large cross-sections, once the tool has been heated
the importance of tempering as parts with complex geometries or through, hold it for at least two
soon as possible is not only to very high demands on dimensio- hours at full temperature each
safeguard the part from cracks, nal stability. In these cases, a third time.
but it is also a matter of
personal safety.
Austenite
Uddeholm has made a wide range
Untempered martensite
of experiments and measurements
Tempered martensite
and collected the resulting data
regarding hardness, toughness,
dimensional changes and retained
austenite in graphs. These graphs
} Retained
austenite

are available for the different steel

grades and are of great help in
order to choose the correct
tempering temperature.
Evolution of the phase
The first priority when choosing content along the
After After After first After second After third
the tempering temperature should heating quenching tempering tempering tempering* different steps of the
heat treatment.
be the mechanical properties, as *HSS steel and big high-pressure die casting dies

some small dimensional adjust-

ments can be made in a last fine
machining step.
The mechanical and physical pro-
perties obtained after tempering
will depend greatly on the chosen
tempering temperature. High-tem-
perature tempering will result in a
lower content of retained austenite
than low-temperature tempering. A lower die for
The material will therefore have aluminium rim
higher compressive strength and just before heat
treatment on
improved dimensional stability (in
charging grid.
service and at surface coating). Photo: ASSAB
Çelik (Turkey)

10
 Treatments | Heat treatment of Uddeholm tool steels

DIMENSIONAL AND In order to reduce distortion while occur due to thermal stresses.
heating during the hardening pro- But as earlier mentioned, a faster
SHAPE STABILITY cess, a stress relieving operation quenching will result in better
should be carried out prior to the mechanical properties.
DISTORTION DURING
hardening operation. It is recom-
HARDENING AND TEMPER- It is important that the quenching
mended to stress relieve the ma-
ING OF TOOL STEEL medium is applied as uniformly as
terial after rough machining. Any
When a piece of tool steel is possible. This is especially valid
distortion can then be adjusted
hardened and tempered, some when forced air or protective gas
during semi-finish machining
warpage or distortion normally atmosphere (as in vacuum furna-
prior to hardening operation.
occurs. This is well known and it ces) is used. Otherwise tempe-
is normal practice to leave some rature differences in the tool can
THERMAL STRESSES lead to signi-ficant distortion.
machining allowance on the tool
prior to hardening, making it pos- Thermal stresses arise every time
sible to adjust the tool to the there is a temperature gradient in TRANSFORMATION STRESSES
correct dimensions after hard- the material, i.e. when the tempe-
Transformation stresses ari-
ening and tempering by grinding, rature is not even all over the part.
se when the microstructure of
for example. Thermal stresses grow with in- the steel is transformed. This
How does distortion take place? creasing heating rate. Uneven is because the three phases in
heating can result in local vari- question – ferrite, austenite and
The cause is stresses in the mate- ations in volume due to uneven martensite – have different
rial. These stresses can be divided dilatation rates and this will also densities, i.e. volumes.
into: contribute to the arising of
Out of all the microstructural
• machining stresses stresses and distortion.
changes that take place during
• thermal stresses In order to tackle this problem, it heat treatment, the biggest contri-
is common practice to heat up the bution to transformation stresses
• transformation stresses material in steps, in order to equ- is caused by the transformation
alise the temperature between the of austenite into martensite. This
MACHINING STRESSES surface and the centre. causes a volume increase.
Machining stresses are generated Excessively rapid and uneven
Linear expansion mm/100 mm
during machining operations such quenching can also cause local
as turning, milling and grinding or martensite formation and thereby
any type of cold working. 0.8
volume increases locally in a piece
If stresses have built up in a 0.6 and gives rise to stresses in this
part, they will be released during section. These stresses can lead
0.4 to distortion and, in some cases,
heating. Heating reduces strength,
releasing stresses through local hardening cracks.
0.2
distortion. This can lead to overall
distortion. 100 200 300 400 500 600 °C
210 390 570 750 930 1110 °F
Temperature
Volume
Yield strength Rp0.2 Effect of temperature on the linear
MPa expansion of Uddeholm ORVAR
400
Supreme, soft annealed.
350
300
250 An attempt should always be
200 made to heat slowly enough so Transformation
150 that the temperature remains virtu- Trans- to austenite
100 formation
ally equal throughout the piece. to martensite Ms AC1 AC3
50
100 200 300 400 500 600 °C What has been said regarding Temperature
210 390 570 750 930 1110 °F heating, applies also to cooling.
Temperature Volume changes due to structural
Very powerful stresses arise transformation.
Effect of temperature on the yield during quenching. As a general
strength of Uddeholm Orvar Supreme, rule, the slower quenching can
soft annealed. be done, the less distortion will

11
 Treatments | Heat treatment of Uddeholm tool steels

HOW CAN DISTORTION SUB-ZERO TREATMENT For the highest requirements on

BE REDUCED? Retained austenite in a tool can dimensional stability, sub-zero
Distortion can be minimized by: transform into martensite during treatment in liquid nitrogen is re-
service. This will lead to local commended after quenching and
• keeping the design simple and
symmetrical distortion and embrittlement of after each tempering. Always finish
the tool due to the presence of with a tempering as last operation,
• eliminating machining stresses
by stress relieving after rough untempered martensite. Therefore in order to avoid the existence of
machining the requirement of maximum untempered martensite in the part.
• heating up slowly to hardening dimensional stability in service
temperature has an implied demand for very SURFACE
• using a suitable grade of steel low or no retained austenite TREATMENT
• quenching the piece as slowly content. This can be achieved by
as possible, but quick enough to using sub-zero treatment after NITRIDING
obtain a correct microstructure quenching or by high temperature Nitriding is performed by exposing
in the steel tempering. the parts to some media rich in
• by usage of martempering or nitrogen under certain physical
step quenching The sub-zero treatment leads to
a reduction of retained austenite conditions that will result in the
• tempering at a suitable diffusion of nitrogen atoms into
temperature content by exposing the tool or
part to very low temperatures. the steel and the formation of
The following values for machining nitrides. The part surface will then
The most commonly used are
allowances can be used as be harder and have a higher wear
about -80°C (-110°F) and -196°C
guide-lines. resistance in its outer layer.
(-320°F). This, in turn, will result
in a hardness increase of up to In the case of corrosion resistant
Machining allowance 1–2 HRC, in comparison to non
Uddeholm on length and diameter
steel with high-chromium con-
steel grade as % of dimension sub-zero treated tools, if low tem- tent, it is very important to take
perature tempering is used. For into con-sideration the fact that
ARNE 0.25 %
high temperature tempered tools nitriding has a detrimental effect
CALDIE 0.25 %
there will be little or no hardness on the corrosion resistance of the
CALMAX/CARMO 0.20 %
CHIPPER/VIKING 0.20 %
increase. material. In other cases nitriding
RIGOR 0.20 % Tools that are high temperature can have a positive effect on the
SLEIPNER 0.25 % tempered, even without a sub- corrosion resistance.
SVERKER 3 0.20 %
zero treatment, will normally have Appropriate steel to be nitrided are
SVERKER 21 0.20 %
a low retained austenite content usually medium-carbon steel with
VANADIS 4 EXTRA
SUPERCLEAN 0.15 % and in most cases, a sufficient nitride-forming elements such as
VANADIS 8 dimensional stability. However, chromium, aluminium, molyb-
SUPERCLEAN 0.15 % for high demands on dimensio- denum and vanadium.
VANADIS 23
SUPERCLEAN 0.15 %
nal stability in service it is also
The core should act as a stable
VANCRON recommended to use a sub-zero
substrate regarding mechanical
SUPERCLEAN 0.20 % treatment in combination with
CORRAX 0.05–0.15 %* properties and microstructure. This
high temperature tempering.
ELMAX means that for hardened material it
SUPERCLEAN 0.15 % is necessary to temper above the
MIRRAX ESR 0.20 % nitriding temperature in order to
No treatment
STAVAX ESR 0.15 %
Sub-zero treatment avoid softening of the core during
UNIMAX 0.30 %
the nitriding process.
ALVAR 14 0.20 % Hardness HRC Retained austenite %
DIEVAR 0.30 % 75 24
FORMVAR 0.30 % 70 Hardness 21
ORVAR 2 MICRODIZED 0.20 % 65
18
ORVAR SUPREME 0.20 % 60 Uddeholm Sleipner.
15
55 Hardness and retained
QRO 90 SUPREME 0.30 % 12
50 austenite as function of
VIDAR SUPERIOR 0.25 % 9
45 Retained austenite
tempering temperature
BURE 0.20 % 6 with and without sub-zero
40
3 treatment.
* Depending on ageing temperature 35
150 250 350 450 550 650°C
300 480 660 840 1020 1200°F
Tempering temperature °C

12
 Treatments | Heat treatment of Uddeholm tool steels

It should be noted that a nitrided two elements. A mixture of ammo- SURFACE COATING
surface cannot be machined with nia gas and carbon monoxide or Surface coating of tool steel has
cutting tools and can only be dioxide is an example of a suitable become a common practise. The
ground with difficulty. A nitrided atmosphere for this purpose. The general aim for these kinds of
surface will cause problems in temperature range for this pro- pro-cesses is to generate an outer
weld repairing as well. cess is 550°C to 580°C (1020°F layer with a very high hardness
to 1075°F) and the time of expo- and low friction that results in
There are several technologies
sure is between 30 minutes and 5 good wear resistance, minimising
available in the field of nitriding;
hours. After the exposure the part the risk for adhesion and sticking.
the main ones are gas nitriding,
should be cooled down rapidly. To be able to use these properties
high pressure nitriding (carried
out in vacuum furnaces) and in an optimal way a tool steel of
CASE HARDENING high quality should be chosen.
plasma nitriding.
Case hardening is a process in
Two common problems of con- The most commonly used coating
which a finished part is exposed
ventional nitriding technologies methods are:
to a carburizing atmosphere and
are possible over-tempering of the high tem-perature simultaneous- • physical vapour deposition
substrate material and thickening ly. The temperature range is coating (PVD coating)
of the nitrided layer in the sharp 850°C–950°C (1560°F–1740°F).
corners. • chemical vapour deposition
This exposure generates a lay-
coating (CVD coating)
Pulsed plasma nitriding techno- er with higher carbon content,
logy diminishes the possibility of normally 0.1–1.5 mm thick. After Chemical vapour deposition
over-tempering by applying the the layer has been formed, the coating can also be carried out
plasma intermittently on the part. part is to be quenched in order for with a plasma assisted technology
This provides a better control over the layer to transform into marten- (PACVD).
the local temperatures during the site with higher carbon content,
process. and it will therefore have a higher
hardness. Tempering of the part
Active screen plasma nitriding is should follow.
also a development of plasma
nitriding technology. This techno- THERMAL DIFFUSION
logy promises a uniform thickness
Thermal diffusion is a process in
of the nitride layer independently of
which vanadium diffuses into the
its geometry.
material and reacts with exis-
ting carbon, to form a vanadium
NITROCARBURIZING
carbide layer. The steel must have CVD TiC/TiN. Photo Eifeler Werkzeuge,
Nitrocarburizing is a process in a minimum of 0.3% carbon. This Germany.
which the parts are to be enriched surface treatment provides a very
in nitrogen and also in carbon, the high level of abrasive wear
enrichment is carried out by expo-
PLATINGS
resistance.
sure to atmosphere rich in these Chromium and nickel metallic
platings are commonly used for a
variety of tooling applications, like
plastic injection moulds. Platings
may be deposited over most steel
grades and they will prevent
seizing and galling, reduce friction,
increase surface hardness and
prevent or reduce corrosion of the
substrate’s surface.

Plasma nitriding. Photo Böhler Uddeholm Czech Republic.

13
 Treatments | Heat treatment of Uddeholm tool steels

TESTING of the impression caused by F1 is BRINELL (HBW)

determined. The depth of penetra- This method is suitable for soft
OF MECHA­NICAL tion (e) is converted into a hard- annealed condition and prehar-
PROPER­TIES ness number (HRC) which is read dened steel with relatively low
directly from a scale on the tester hardness. In Brinell hardness
When the steel is hardened and
dial or read-out. testing, a tungsten (W) ball is
tempered, its strength is affected,
pressed against the material
so let us take a closer look at how
VICKERS (HV) whose hardness is to be
these properties are measured.
Vickers is the most universal of the determined. After unloading, two
measurements of the diameter of
HARDNESS TESTING three testing methods. In Vickers
hardness testing a pyramid- the impression are taken at 90°
Hardness testing is the most
shaped dia­mond with a square to each other (d1 and d2) and the
popular way to check the results
base and a peak angle of 136° is HBW value is read off a table,
of hardening. Hardness is usually
pressed under a load F against from the average of d1 and d2.
the pro­perty that is specified when
a tool is hardened. the material whose hardness is When the test results are repor-
to be determined. After unload­ ted, Brinell hard­ness is indicated
It is easy to test hardness. The ing, the diagonals d1 and d2 of the with the letters HBW and a suffix
material is not destroyed and the impression are measured and the indicating ball diameter, the mass
apparatus is relatively inexpen­sive. hardness number (HV) is read off with which the load was exerted
The most common methods are a table. and (when required) the loading
Rockwell C (HRC), Vickers (HV)
When the test results are repor- period, as illustrated by the
and Brinell (HBW).
ted, Vickers hardness is indicated following example:
The old expression “file-hard” with the letters HV and a suffix HBW 5/750/15 = Brinell hardness
should not be entirely forgotten. indicating the mass that exerted determined with 5 mm tungsten
In order to check whether hard- the load and (when required) the (W) ball and under load of 750 kgf
ness is satisfactory, for example loading period, as illustrated by exerted for 15 seconds.
above 60 HRC, a file of good qua- the following example:
lity can provide a good indication.
HV 30/20 = Vickers hardness
deter-mined with a load of 30 kgf
ROCKWELL (HRC)
exerted for 20 seconds.
This method is suitable for hard-
ened material and never for ma-
terial in soft annealed condition.
F
In Rockwell hardness testing, a
conical diamond is first pressed
with a force F0, and then with a
force F0+F1 against a specimen 136°
d1 d2
of the material which hardness is
to be determined. After unloading
to F0, the increase (e) of the depth

Principle of Vickers hardness testing.

F0 F0+F1=F F0

HRC D
h0 h e

F
Surface of specimen
100 h0
d
Hardness scale

e h
0,2 mm
h
HRC
0

Principle of Rockwell hardness testing. Principle of Brinell hardness testing.

14
 Treatments | Heat treatment of Uddeholm tool steels

TENSILE STRENGTH IMPACT TESTING SOME WORDS

Tensile strength is determined on A certain quantity of energy is
a test piece which is gripped in a required to produce a fracture
OF ADVICE TO
tensile testing machine and sub- in a material. This quantity of TOOL DESIGNERS
jected to a successively increasing energy can be used as a measure
tensile load until fracture occurs. of the toughness of the material, DESIGN
The properties that are nor­mally a higher absorption of energy indi- Avoid:
recorded are yield strength Rp0.2 cating better toughness. The most
• sharp corners
and ulti­mate tensile strength Rm, common and simplest method of
while elongation A5 and reduction determining toughness is impact • notch effects
of area Z are measured on the test testing. A rigid pendulum is • large differences in section
piece. In general, it can be said allowed to fall from a known thicknesses
that hardness is depen­dent upon height and to strike a test spe-
yield strength and ultimate tensile cimen at the lowest point of its These are often causes of har-
strength, while elongation and swing. The angle through which dening cracks, espe­cially if the
reduction of area are an indication the pendulum travels after brea- material is cooled down too far or
of toughness. High values for yield king the specimen is measured, allow­ed to stand untempered.
and ultimate tensile strength gene- and the amount of energy that
Unsuitable Preferred
rally mean low values for elonga- was absorbed in breaking the design alternative
tion and reduction of area. specimen can be calculated.

x
Several variants of impact testing
Fillet
are in use. The various methods
differ in the shape of the speci-
mens. These are usually provided
with a V- or U-shaped notch, the

x
test methods being then known
as Charpy V and Charpy U
respectively.
For the most part, tool steel has a
rather low toughness by reason of
its high strength. Materials of low
toughness are notch sensitive, for
HEAT TREATMENT
which reason smooth, unnotched
specimens are often used in the Choose suitable hardnesses for the
impact testing of tool steel. The application con­cerned. Be particu-
re­sults of the tests are commonly larly careful to avoid tempera­ture
stated in joules, or alternatively ranges that can reduce toughness
in kgm (strictly speaking kgfm), after tempering.
Tensile test. al­though J/cm2 or kgm/cm2 is Keep the risk of distortion in mind
sometimes used in­stead, specially and follow recommendations con-
in Charpy U testing. cerning machining allow­an­ces.
Tensile tests are used mostly on
structural steel, seldom on tool It is a good idea to specify stress
steel. It is difficult to per­form relieving on the drawings.
tensile tests at hardnesses above
55 HRC. Tensile tests may be of
interest for tougher types of tool
steel, especially when they are
used as high strength structu-
ral materials. These include e.g.
Uddeholm Impax Supreme and
Uddeholm Orvar Supreme.

Impact testing machine.

15
 Treatments | Heat treatment of Uddeholm tool steels

Vacuum furnace.

16
 Treatments | Heat treatment of Uddeholm tool steels

APPROX. HARDNESS AFTER

HARDENING AND TEMPERING
Austenitizing
HRC at tempering temperature °C, 2 x 2 h
Uddeholm temperature
grade °C 200 250 500 525 550 600

ALVAR 14 8501) 54 53 45 – 42 38
AM CORRAX 8502) – – – – – –
ARNE 8301) 62 60 45 43 41 38
BURE 1020 52 52 53* – 52 46
BALDER6) – – – – – – –
CALDIE 1020 3 x 525°C*** 3 x 540°C 3 x 560°C
60 59 56
CALMAX 960 59 58 53 53 50 43
CARMO 960 59 58 53 53 50 43
CHIPPER 1010 59 57 59* 58 56 48
CORRAX 8502) – – – – – –
DIEVAR 1025 53 52 52* – 52 47
ELMAX3) 1080 59 58 60** 59** 58** –
FERMO – Delivered in prehardened condition
FORMAX – Delivered in prehardened condition
FORMVAR 1025 53 52 52* – 52 47
HOLDAX – Delivered in prehardened condition
IDUN – Delivered in prehardened condition
IMPAX SUPREME – Delivered in prehardened condition
MIRRAX ESR 1020 – 50 52** – 42** 36
MIRRAX 40 – Delivered in prehardened condition
NIMAX ESR4) – Delivered in prehardened condition
NIMAX4) – Delivered in prehardened condition
ORVAR SUPREME 1020 52 52 54* – 52 46
ORVAR SUPERIOR 1020 52 52 54* – 52 46
ORVAR 2 M 1020 52 52 54* – 52 46
POLMAX 1030 53 52 54** – 53** 37
QRO 90 SUPREME 1020 49 49 51* – 51* 505)
RAMAX HH – Delivered in prehardened condition
ROYALLOY – Delivered in prehardened condition
RIGOR 950 61 59 56* 55* 53 46
SLEIPNER 1030 3 x 525°C*** 3 x 540°C 3 x 560°C
62 60 58
SR 1855 850 63 62 50 48 46 42
STAVAX ESR 1030 53 52 54** – 43** 37
SVERKER 3 960 60 59 56 53 – –
SVERKER 21 1020 63 59 60 57 54 48
UHB 11 – As-delivered condition (~200HB)
UNIMAX 1020 – – – 57*** 55 49
VANADIS 4 3 x 525°C*** 3 x 540°C 3 x 560°C
EXTRA3) 10207) 61 60 59
11508) 64 64 63
VANADIS 83) 10207) 61 60 59
11808) 64 64 63
VANAX3) 1080°C 60 – – – – –
VANCRON3) 950–1150 3 x 540°C
57–65
VIDAR
SUPERIOR 1000 52 51 51* – 50 45
VIDAR 1 1000 54 53 55* – 52 46
VIDAR 1 ESR 1000 54 53 55* – 52 46
High speed steel 3 x 560°C
VANADIS 233) 1050–1180 60–66
VANADIS 303) 1000–1180 60–67
VANADIS 603) 1000–1180 64–69

* This tempering temp. should be avoided due to the risk of temper brittleness.
** For Uddeholm Stavax ESR, Uddeholm Mirrax ESR, Uddeholm Polmax and Uddeholm Elmax corrosion resistance is reduced.
*** The lowest tempering temperature when high temperature tempering is 525°C.
1)
Quench in oil. 2) Solution treatment. Ageing: ~51 HRC after 525°C/4h, ~44 HRC after 575°C/4h, ~41 HRC after 600°C/4h.
3)
Powder Metallurgy SuperClean tool steel. 4) The delivery hardness of Uddeholm Nimax ESR and Nimax can not be increased.
Tempering shall be avoided as toughness will be reduced. 5) At 650°C 2 x 2h: 42 HRC. 6) Uddeholm Balder is delivered
pre-hardened, tempered at 590°C (1090°F) /2 x 2h. 7) For better toughness. 8) For better wear resistance.

17
 Treatments | Heat treatment of Uddeholm tool steels

HARDNESS CONVERSION TABLE

These conversions are based on EN-ISO 18265:2013.
Approx. comparison between hardness and ultimate tensile strength.

Approx. UTS
Rockwell Brinell* Vickers
HRC HBW 30 kg
N/mm2 kp/mm2

26 259 273 873 89

27 265 279 897 92
28 272 286 919 94
29 279 294 944 96
30 287 302 970 99
31 295 310 995 101
32 303 318 1024 104
33 311 327 1052 107
34 320 336 1082 110
35 328 345 1111 113
36 337 355 1139 116
37 346 364 1168 119
38 354 373 1198 122
39 363 382 1227 125
40 373 392 1262 129
41 382 402 1296 132
42 392 412 1327 135
43 402 423 1362 139
44 413 434 1401 143
45 424 446 1425 145
46 436 459 1478 151
47 448 471 1524 155
48 460 484 1572 160
49 474 499 1625 166
50 488 513 1675 171
51 502 528 1733 177
52 518 545 1793 183
53 532 560 1845 188
54 549 578 1912 195
55 566 596 1979 202
56 585 615 2050 209
57 603 634 2121 216
58 654
59 675
60 698
61 720
62 746
63 773
64 800

* 10 mm ball, 3 000 kg load.

18