The Impact of Tempering Temperature on Retained Austenite and Mechanical Properties of 1.2842 Tool Steel

Abstract

This work investigates the impact of tempering temperature on the mechanical properties quenched 1.2842 (O2) cold work tool steel depending on the volume fraction of retained austenite (RA). The tempering temperature significantly influences proportion of RA and the mechanical properties. Therefore, the tempering temperature and the volume fractions of RA in through-hardened tool steels must be optimized to minimize dimensional variations and augment performance in service. In this work, the hardened samples were subjected to tempering process at different tempering temperatures and hardnes, impact and tensile tests were applied to the samples. Then the results obtained from these tests were analyzed and optimum tempering temperature was defined. The findings reveal that low-temperature tempering leads to a robust stabilization of the RA phase and better mechanical properties for the steel investigated.