Influence of loading conditions on wear behaviour of H11 tool steel

Abstract

Purpose In hot forging, a significant amount of forging force is used for overcoming frictional force at the die-billet interface. The high frictional force along with thermomechanical stress lead to wear, plastic deformation, mechanical fatigue and cracks, which reduce the service life of hot forging dies. Of all these different types of issues, wear is the predominant mode of failure in hot forging dies. This paper aims to describe mechanisms of wear transition in different loads at near forging temperature, occurring during sliding of chromium-based H11 tool steel specimens. Design/methodology/approach High temperature pin-on-disc tests are performed with pin specimens machined from bars of X38CrMoV5 steel, heat treated to surface hardness of 40-42 HRc. The disc is made of EN 31 steel with hardness of 60-62 HRc. Tests are performed at constant temperature of 500°C, and the normal load was varied from 20 to 70 N. Findings Scanning electron microscopy investigations on worn surface have revealed that wear is primarily due to abrasion and plastic deformation. The test results show an increasing trend in wear rate with increase in load up to 30 N, followed by a reversal in trend until 50 N. This transition in wear rate is caused by development of wear resistant layers, which are formed by compaction of wear debris particles on to the worn surfaces. These compact layers are found to be stable during load range from 40 and 50 N. However, with further increase in load, abrasive wear tracks are observed without any evidence of protective layers. As a result, there is an increase in wear rate with increase in loads above 50 N. In addition, plastic shearing was dominant over abrasive wear at this load regime. Originality/value The study on wear behaviour of H11 hot forging steel at 20 to 70 N will be an input to the research in hot forming industries.