Development of a New PM Tool Steel for Optimization of Cold Working of Advanced High-Strength Steels

Abstract

In the present study, Uddeholm Vancron SuperClean cold work tool steel was investigated concerning wear resistance and fatigue strength, using laboratory and semi-industrial tests. The Uddeholm Vancron SuperClean was designed with the help of ThermoCalc calculations to contain a high amount of a carbonitride phase, which was suggested to improve tribological performance of this tool steel. In order to investigate the tested steel, galling tests with a slider-on flat-surface tribotester and semi-industrial punching tests were performed on an advanced high-strength steel, CP1180HD. Uddeholm Vanadis 8 SuperClean containing only a carbide phase and Uddeholm Vancron 40 containing a mixture of carbides and carbonitrides were also tested to compare the performance of the tool steels. The microstructure and wear mechanisms were characterized with scanning electron microscopy. It was found that the carbonitrides presented in Uddeholm Vancron SuperClean improved its resistance to material transfer and galling. Semi-industrial punching tests also confirmed that Uddeholm Vancron SuperClean cold work tool steel also possesses enhanced resistance to chipping and fatigue crack nucleation, which confirms the beneficial role of the carbonitride phase in wear resistance of cold work tool steel.

Hot Stamping Parts Shear Mold Manufacturing via Metal Additive Manufacturing

“…For more than 20 years, advanced mold makers and special steel manufacturers have been researching the development of shear-mold-based manufacturing technologies for hot stamping parts. However, there is a limit to their commercialization because of the relatively high manufacturing costs and short mold life of expensive special steel materials [10][11][12][13][14]. On the other hand, from the viewpoint of production engineering, the use of laser equipment in the shearing of hot stamping parts, which is currently the most widely applied strategy, is not reasonably efficient, and thus, it is necessary to develop an avoidance process technology to overcome this disadvantage.…”

Analysis of Milling Efficiency of the Vanadis® 8 Tool Steel with Additions of Vanadium and Molybdenum Carbides

“…Facing the challenges generated by the search and development of high-performance tool steels, hybrid mechanical properties such as high hardness and high wear resistance in line with high toughness, have been a constant target of researches that seek to obtain solutions to increase the durability of tool steels, which in most cases are subjected to extreme working conditions [3][4][5] .…”