D5 Tool Steel - High-Carbon, High-Chromium, Cold-Work Steels (UNS T30405)

Topics Covered

Introduction
Chemical Composition
Physical Properties
Mechanical Properties
Other Designations
Fabrication and Heat Treatment
     Heat Treatment
     Forging
     Annealing
     Tempering
Applications

Introduction

Cold-work tool steels include the high-carbon, high-chromium steels or group D steels. These steels are designated as group D steels and consist of D2, D3, D4, D5, and D7 steels. These steels contain 1.5 to 2.35% of carbon and 12% of chromium. Except type D3 steel, all the other group D steels include 1% Mo and are air hardened. Type D3 steel is oil-quenched; though small sections can be gas quenched after austenitization using vacuum. This makes tools made with type D3 steel brittle during hardening. Type D2 steel is the most commonly used steel among the group D steels.

The following sections will discuss more about D5 steels.

Chemical Composition

The chemical composition of D5 tool steels is given below:

Element Content (%)
C 1.40 – 1.60
Mn 0.60
Si 0.60
Co 2.50-3.50
Cr 11.00 – 13.00
Mo 0.70 – 1.20
V 1.00
P 0.03
Ni 0.30
Cu 0.25
S 0.60

Physical Properties

The physical properties of D5 tool steels are outlined in the following table:

Properties Metric Imperial
Density 7.7 – 8.03 x 1000 kg/m3 0.278 – 0.290 lb/in3
Melting point 1426°C 2600°F

Mechanical Properties

The mechanical properties of D5 tool steels are tabulated below.

Properties Metric Imperial
Poisson's ratio 0.27-0.30 0.27-0.30
Elastic modulus 190-210 GPa 27557-30457 ksi

Other Designations

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The other designations of D5 tool steels are:

  • ASTM A681
  • SAE J437
  • SAE J438
  • UNS T30405
  • FED QQ-T-570

Fabrication and Heat Treatment

Heat Treatment

D5 steels should be preheated very slowly up to 815°C (1500°F), then temperature should be increased to 1009°C (1850°F) and held for 20 to 45 minutes. Then they are air quenched.

Forging

Forging of D5 steels can be done at 1065°C (1950°F) down to 1750°F. Do not forge below 926°C (1700°F).

Annealing

Annealing of D5 steels should be done at 886°C (1627°F) followed by slow furnace cooling at 4°C (40°F) per hour or less.

Tempering

D5 steels can be tempered at 204°C (400°F) for achieving Rockwell C hardness of 61 and at 537°C (1000°F) for a Rockwell C hardness of 54.

Applications

Applications of D5 steels include thread rolling, blanking or forming dies operating at temperatures below 482°C (900°F).

Comments

  1. Douglas LeGrady Douglas LeGrady United States says:

    Not bad.  I wish it would give a summary of applications for all the D series so that a fair evaluation can be gleaned from the spectrum provided.

The opinions expressed here are the views of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of AZoM.com.

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