Abdenour Dadou, Hamid Dilmi, Boudjema Bezzazi, Chouaib Aribi, Ismail Daoud

Oxidation and property evolution of AISI T5 steel under varying heat treatments

J. Min. Metall. Sect. B-Metall., 61 (3) (2025) 317-332. DOI:10.2298/JMMB250713025D
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Available online 25 novembar 2025
(Received 13 July 2025; Accepted 17 November 2025)
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Abstract

This study evaluates the effect of heat treatment on the mechanical, tribological, and oxidation behavior of AISI T5 steel. The chemical composition was first characterized using spectroscopy and SEM. A two-year oxidation test conducted in humid and relatively dry atmospheres showed strong environmental sensitivity: in humid air, the oxidation rate reached 11.27×10-2 P/P0 per month with a sharp increase after 25 days, whereas in dry air it remained below 1.35×10-2 P/P0 per month, following a linear and nearly flat trend indicative of a protective oxide scale. Heat treatment significantly increased hardness from 34.15 ± 0.59 HRC (untreated) to 62.70 ± 0.66 and 60.80 ± 0.48 HRC for water and oil quenched steels, respectively. Impact strength decreased accordingly, with oil quenching offering the best hardness-toughness balance (60.8 HRC, 2.08 Kcv). Instrumented indentation confirmed substantial surface strengthening, with HIT rising to 17.39 ± 0.29 GPa (Q. Water) and 7.68 ± 0.12 GPa (Q. Oil). Under dry sliding, wear rates were reduced by 81.3% (Q. Water) and 62.5% (Q. Oil), with faster run-in in the water-quenched condition. XRD revealed tempered martensite with Fe3W3C/Cr7C3 (Q. Water) and Co3W3C (Q. Oil), consistent with thermal conditions. This study provides new experimental data on the effects of 15-minute austenitization followed by oil or water quenching on the properties of AISI T5 steel, highlighting its potential for process optimization.

Keywords: AISI T5; Oxidation; Heat treatment; Hardness; Nanoindentation; Abrasion

Correspondence Address:
Abdenour Dadou,
M’hamed Bougara University -Boumerdes, Faculty of Technology, Algeria;
email: a.dadou@univ-boumerdes.dz

 

 

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