Tool Steels And Types Of Tool Steels That Are Used In Manufacturing

As we stated other contents of Mechanical Base, steels are the one of the major material in industry. Also in manufacturing, steels are generally used. These types of steels that are used in manufacturing tooling and processes called as ‘tool steels’. In this article, we will explain, what is tool steel and what are the properties, alloying elements and applications of tool steels in industry.

What Is ‘Tool Steel’?

Tool steels are high alloyed steels to use them in various manufacturing processes such as molding, machining, casting etc. Some of properties that tools steels must have;

• Hardenablity,
• Less distortion in heat treatment,
• Hot hardness,
• Hard metallic carbides for abrasion resistance,
• High toughness.

These properties can change according to the application that tool steels are used. There are bunch of types of tool steels that are generally represented by a letter in their designation according to the AISI.

• High Speed Tool Steels(HSS): Desgination letters are T and M. They are generally used as cutting tool in machining processes. So hot hardness and high wear resistance is very important parameter. The letter of T represents the alloying element of Tungsten and M represents Molybdenum.
• Hot-Working Tool Steels: These types of tool steels are used in hot dies, die casting etc. The designation letter for hot-working tool steels is H.
• Cold-Work Tool Steels: These materials are used in sheetmetal pressing, cold extrusion processes, and some of forging processes. The designation letter for cold-work tool steels is D which stands for ‘Die’.
• Water Hardening Tool Steels: Low cost is the one of the biggest advantage of water hardening tool steels. Water hardening tool steels do not generally includes alloying elements. They can be hardened with water quenching. They are generally used in cold dies. The designation letter for water hardening tool steels is W which stands for ‘Water’.
• Shock Resistant Tool Steels: In processes like sheet metal pressing, punching etc. toughness is very important. Designation letter for shock resistant tool steels is S which stands for ‘Shock’.
• Mold Steels: This is the type of tool steel that is used for rubber and plasting molding generally. The designation letter is P.
• Low-Alloy Tool Steels: Can be used in special manufacturing applications.

These are the general information about tool steels. Do not forget to leave your comments and questions below about ‘tool steels’ below!