Influence of the Powdered metal High-Speed Steel Production on the Property Package

Abstract: The state of tool production in Russia is analyzed. The main producers and material grades used in the production of household tools are identified. Powdered metal high-speed steels are almost not used in the domestic market, but widely used in the foreign tool steel market due to their technological advantage (including the possibility of using high-carbon and high-alloy high-speed steels). A new group of cost-effectively alloyed tungsten-free high-carbon and high-vanadium high-speed steels is presented, which is almost unfeasible to manufacture and use by traditional technology due to low processing properties. The authors give recommendations on the manufacturing technique of such steels by powder metallurgy and the modes of their heat treatment. The article studies the properties of these steels, including the main mechanical (hardness, bending strength, toughness and heat resistance), technological (pressure, cutting, grinding) and operational properties (estimated by turning life). Structural and phase compositions, as well as their influence on the main and technological properties are investigated. The compacting mode affects the billet density. The article presents the distribution of alloying elements in the microstructure of powdered metal high-speed steel and the results of their relative grindability. The results of tool durability tests are also presented. There are significant advantages of high-carbon high-speed steels with a high vanadium content, especially in terms of processing properties, compared to traditional high-speed steels. It is possible to produce high-alloyed tool steels using inexpensive carbide-promoting alloying elements. The steels under consideration can be used to produce a wide variety of tools, including hot stamping. The use of powder technology opens up the prospect of developing universal cost-effective alloyed powder tool steels. © 2022, Allerton Press, Inc.