Investigation on Wear Resistance of Cr8 Tool Steels

Wear resistance of cold work tool steel is critical in stamping manufacture. In this paper, comparison tests of dry sliding wear under different loads were carried out by using a ring-on-block friction and wear tester. Four kinds of Cr8 tool steels were evaluated and ranked in term of wear volume and friction coefficient. Wear mechanism was determined by observing and analyzing the morphology of the worn surface. Results indicate that abrasive wear can be always found under different loads. As load increased, surface oxidation became obvious and oxidation wear played a larger role in wear mechanism. The wear volume increased with the increasing load, average friction coefficient firstly increased and then decreased with the load. The positive linear relationship between total wear volume and M₇C₃ eutectic carbide content was revealed.