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2nd International Conference on Materials Manufacturing and Design Engineering
2nd International Conference on Materials Manufacturing and Design Engineering
Minimization of Distortion in Heat Treated AISI D2 Tool Steel:
Minimization of Distortion in Heat Treated AISI D2 Tool Steel:
Mechanism
Manufacturing Engineering and Distortion
Society International Analysis
Conference 2017, MESIC 2017, 28-30 June
Mechanism and Distortion Analysis
2017, Vigo (Pontevedra), Spain
Tushar Sonaraa*, Sachin Lomteaa, Chandrashekhar Gogtebb,V. Balasubramaniancc
Tushar Sonar *, Sachin Lomte , Chandrashekhar Gogte ,V. Balasubramanian
Costing a
models
Department of Mechanical
b
for capacity
Engineering, optimization
Maharashtra in Industry
Institute of Technology, Aurangabad, 4.0: Trade-off
411001, Maharashtra State, India
a
R&
Department ofD Department,
Mechanical MIT Academic
Engineering, and Research
Maharashtra Institute,
Institute Aurangabad,
of Technology, 411001, Maharashtra
Aurangabad, State, India
411001, Maharashtra State, India
Centre forRbetween
c
Materials
b
& D Department, used
Joining and capacity
MITReserch (CEMAJOR),
Academic and
Annamalai
and Research operational
Institute,University,
Aurangabad,Chidambaram, efficiency
608002, Tamilnadu
411001, Maharashtra State, India
State, India
c
Centre for Materials Joining and Reserch (CEMAJOR), Annamalai University, Chidambaram, 608002, Tamilnadu State, India

A. Santanaa, P. Afonsoa,*, A. Zaninb, R. Wernkeb

Abstract a
University of Minho, 4800-058 Guimarães, Portugal
Abstract b
Unochapecó, 89809-000 Chapecó, SC, Brazil
Heat treatment is used for the advancement in mechanical properties of the material depending on their application. Quenching is
Heat treatment
general stage inis heat
used treatment
for the advancement
process which in mechanical
involves properties of the
rapid cooling ofmaterial depending
the formerly on their part
austenitized application. Quenching
succeeding to phaseis
general stage in heat treatment process which involves rapid cooling of the formerly austenitized part
transmutation from austenite to martensite in steel. It results in the distortion of a mechanical component. This also affect on its succeeding to phase
transmutation
Abstract
surface integrity. from austenite
This to martensite
investigation presentsin the
steel. It resultsbehavior
distortion in the distortion of a mechanical
of heat treated AISI D2 Tool component. Thisstandard
steel using also affect
Navyon C-
its
surface integrity. This investigation presents the distortion behavior of heat treated AISI D2 Tool
ring test. Deep cryogenic treatment was performed to reduce the transformational stresses and induce the reversed residual steel using standard Navy C-
Under
ring test.the
stresses concept
toDeep
reduce the of
cryogenic "Industry
treatment
distortion 4.0",performed
was
potential production
of AISI D2 processes
to reduce
Tool will beshowed
pushedstresses
the transformational
steel. Results to beand
minimum increasingly interconnected,
induce the deviation
dimensional reversed residual
in deep
information
stresses to based
reduce on
the a real
distortiontime basis
potential and,
of necessarily,
AISI D2 Tool much
steel. more
Results efficient.
showed In this
minimum
cryogenic treatment as compared to conventional heat treatment. The hardness and surface finish is also improved by 1.26%context, capacity
dimensional optimization
deviation in deep
and
goes beyond
cryogenic the
treatment traditional
as compared aim of
to capacity
conventional maximization,
heat treatment.contributing
The hardness also
and for organization’s
surface
13.43% as compared to conventional heat treatment. The improved surface finish is a measure of reduced distortion in finish is alsoprofitability
improved by and value.
1.26% and
deep
Indeed,
13.43% lean
as management
compared to and
conventional
cryogenically treated AISI D2 Tool steel. continuous
heat improvement
treatment. The approaches
improved surface suggest
finish is a capacity
measure of optimization
reduced instead
distortion in of
deep
maximization.
cryogenically treated The AISI
studyD2ofTool capacity
steel. optimization and costing models is an important research topic that deserves
contributions
© 2017The Authors. from both the practical
Published and theoretical
by Elsevier B.V. perspectives. This paper presents and discusses a mathematical
© 2017
2018TheThe Authors.
Authors. Published
Publishedbyby Elsevier B.V.B.V.
Peer-review
model
© for under responsibility
capacity management ofElsevier
the on
based scientific
differentcommittee
costing of the 2nd
models (ABC International
and TDABC). Conference
A genericon Materials
model has been
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the 2nd International Conference on Materials Manufacturing and
Peer-review
Manufacturing
developed under
and
Design Engineering. and
it was responsibility
Design
used to analyzeof the
Engineering.idle scientific
capacity committee
and to of
design the 2nd
strategies International
towards the Conference
maximization on Materials
of organization’s
Manufacturing
value. and Design
The trade-off Engineering.
capacity maximization vs operational efficiency is highlighted and it is shown that capacity
Keywords:Heat treatment; Cryogenic treatment, Quenching; Distortion; Navy C-ring etc.
optimization might hide operational inefficiency.
Keywords:Heat treatment; Cryogenic treatment, Quenching; Distortion; Navy C-ring etc.
© 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the Manufacturing Engineering Society International Conference
1. Introduction
2017.
1. Introduction
Heat treatment
Keywords: Cost Models;isABC;
usedTDABC;
to achieve theManagement;
Capacity advancement in mechanical
Idle Capacity; properties
Operational Efficiency of steel components. It involves a
Heat treatment is used to achieve the advancement in mechanical properties of steel components. It involves a

1. Introduction
* Corresponding author. Tel.:+91-7507491023.
*E-mail
The address:
Corresponding
cost tushar.sonar77@gmail.com
of idleauthor. Tel.:+91-7507491023.
capacity is a fundamental information for companies and their management of extreme importance
E-mail address: tushar.sonar77@gmail.com
in modern production systems. In general, it is defined as unused capacity or production potential and can be measured
2351-9789© 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.
in several ways: tons of production, available hours of manufacturing, etc. The management of the idle capacity
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the 2nd International Conference on Materials Manufacturing and
2351-9789© 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.
* PauloEngineering.
Design Afonso.
Peer-review Tel.:
under +351 253 510of
responsibility 761;
thefax: +351 253
scientific 604 741 of the 2nd International Conference on Materials Manufacturing and
committee
E-mail address:
Design Engineering.psafonso@dps.uminho.pt

2351-9789 © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Peer-review
2351-9789 © under
2018responsibility
The Authors. of the scientificbycommittee
Published Elsevier of the Manufacturing Engineering Society International Conference 2017.
B.V.
Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the 2nd International Conference on Materials Manufacturing and
Design Engineering.
10.1016/j.promfg.2018.02.016
114 Tushar Sonar et al. / Procedia Manufacturing 20 (2018) 113–118
2 Tushar Sonar et al. / Procedia Manufacturing 00 (2017) 000–000

quenching stage, which results in undesirable distortions in the component [1]. The distortion of heat treated parts
affects on its functional performance and leads to the production and economical losses [2-3]. The distortion
encountered during the process of hardening the tool steels are the changes in the size and shape of a mechanical
component. D2 Tool steel is an air hardening, high carbon, high chromium tool steel widely used for the cold
working of metals. It is used for making cutting tools and dies. Distortion control is the major requirement in Heat
treated AISI D2 Tool steel applications. The use of Navy C-ring test to study the distortion behaviour of the material
during quenching in heat treatment has been reported in the literature [1] [4-13]. The distortion of the mechanical
component is analyzed by observing the dimensional changes of heat treated Navy C-ring specimens machined from
the same material. The distortion of the Navy C-ring is generally considered to be comparable to those of the actual
heat treated component [1-13]. Manivannan et al. [5] studied the distortion in heat treated 1010 steel C ring samples
and concluded that the distortion due to nitrocarburisation process is less as compared to the carbonitriding and
carburizing process. Li et al. [6] performed Navy C ring test on quench treated and deep cryogenically treated cold
work die steel Cr8Mo2SiV and observed that the variation in cooling rate and temperature distribution between the
gap and core regions of the specimen are prominent. The gap opening and core region of the ring showed a more
rapid and a slower cooling rate respectively. There is a latent possibility of hardening crack at the gap region of the
Navy C-ring during quenching. The changes in the cooling rate and thermal gradient are notably less in DCT than in
QT. Nan et al. [7] studied distortion of nitro-carburized 1010 steel using Navy C-ring test and concluded that
nitocarburizing performed at 565 oC for a period of 5 hours resulted in lesser distortion. Da Silva et al. [1]
investigated distortion of AISI 4140 steel in oil quenching and confirmed that simulation and experimental results
are in good agreement. Leskovšek and Ule [8] observed the dimensional changes of HSS using Navy C-ring test and
concluded that the dimensional stability of the navy C-ring was improved due to the deep cryogenic treatment after
vacuum heat treatment. Diekman [9] claimed that the cryogenic treatment of the workpiece before heat treatment
results in less distortion in heat treatment and thus the less amount of grinding is required to flatten or to resize the
workpiece. Lomte [14] admitted that deep cryogenic treatment affects on the intensity of residual stresses which can
be considered as a measure of durability of any tool steel.
In the literature, there is a lack of systematic investigation on the distortion behavior of AISI D2 Tool steel. The
research is focused mainly on the comparison of experimental results with simulation. This research paper aims at
investigating the effect of heat treatment on the distortion behavior of AISI D2 Tool steel using a standard Navy C
Ring Test and minimizing the distortion using a deep cryogenic treatment. For the precise measurement CMM is
used.

2. Experimental work

AISI D2 Tool Steel confirming to TAC-21/X160Cr12 grade as per IS 1570 (Part 6) was selected with chemical
compositions as shown in table 1.

Table 1 Chemical composition of D2 Tool steel

Elements C Mn Cr Ni Mo S P Si V W
Wt % 1.61 0.30 11.50 0.15 0.43 0.014 0.018 0.25 0.16 0.077

The Navy C-ring samples were manufactured by VMC machine as per the standard dimensions as shown in fig.1.
The D2 Tool steel samples of size 20 mm X 20 mm X 12 mm were machined for surface roughness, hardness and
microstructural tests. The samples were then machined by surface grinder with 0.02 mm as a depth of cut. All the
samples were cut and machined with the same cutting conditions before treatment. Navy C-ring and metallographic
samples were subjected to vacuum heat treatment and deep cryogenic treatment as per the heat treatment schedule
depicted in table 2.The dimensions of the D2 Tool steel Navy C-ring specimens were measured by CMM
(Cordimesur 6.10.5) before and after heat treatment. The dimensions were measured at three sections: top, middle
and bottom. The average of 3 readings was taken as a final reading of each dimensional parameter. To study the
microstructural changes, the metallographic samples were first polished and then etched by the Picral etchant (4g
Picric acid and 100ml Ethanol). The samples were then examined under an Optical microscope at 500X. The
Surface Roughness values (Ra and Rt) were measured using a Taylor Hobson, Seltronic 3 profilometer with a cutoff
 Tushar Sonar et al. / Procedia Manufacturing 20 (2018) 113–118 115
Tushar Sonar et al.. / Procedia Manufacturing 00 (2017) 000–000 3

length of 0.8 mm. The hardness of metallographic samples was measured by the Rockwell hardness tester as per the
ASTM standard E18-15. The Rockwell hardness test was carried out at 150 Kg-f total load with the Diamond cone
indenter and Rockwell hardness scale C.

Fig. 1. Standard dimensions of Navy C-ring [1-12]

Table 2 Heat Treatment schedule of D2 Tool steel

Sample Code Heat Treatment Schedule

CHT Austenitizing at 1040oC, 2 hours + Quenching in gaseous N2 at 540oC+ Tempering at 540oC, 4 hours.

Austenitizing at 1040oC, 2 hours + Quenching in gaseous N2 at 540oC+ Tempering at 540oC, 4 hours + Deep Cryogenic
DCT
quenching in gaseous N2 at -196oC, 24 hours + Double Tempering at 150oC, 2 hours.

3. Results and Discussions

3.1 Surface roughness and Microstructural changes

The optical microstrcture of CHT and DCT Sample is as shown in fig. 2. The microstructure shows large,
irregularly shaped primary carbides (PCs) and small spherical secondary carbides (SCs). DCT samples have more
precipitation and uniform distribution of fine secondary carbide particles than CHT samples.

Fig. 2. Optical Micrograph of (a) CHT and (b) DCT AISI D2 Tool steel samples (500X)
116 Tushar Sonar et al. / Procedia Manufacturing 20 (2018) 113–118
4 Tushar Sonar et al. / Procedia Manufacturing 00 (2017) 000–000

The Surface Roughness values (Ra and Rt) of the UT, CHT and DCT D2 Tool Steel samples are presented in
table 3. The DCT samples have less roughness value than UT and CHT samples. The Deep Cryogenic treatment of
D2 Tool Steel has shown significant improvement in the surface finish. The DCT has resulted in 11.63% and13.43%
improvement in surface finish of D2 Tool Steel as compared with UT and CHT samples.

Table 3 Surface roughness measurement of AISI D2 Tool steel samples

Sample Ra Rt
UT 0.2312 2.01
CHT 0.2360 2.06
DCT 0.2043 1.778
The improvement in surface finish can be attributed to the more precipitation and uniform distribution of fine
secondary carbide particles. Distortion causes detrimental effects on the surface integrity of the material. The deep
cryogenically treated samples showed improved surface finish due to the cryogenic conditioning of martensite with
progressive tempering. The increased precipitation of fine secondary carbides causes filling of micro cracks. This is
the measure of reduced distortion in deep cryogenic treatment.

3.2 Hardness

Table 4 Rockwell hardness measurement of AISI D2 Tool steel samples

Treatment Rockwell Hardness (HRC)
CHT 52.53
DCT 53.2
Table 4 shows the average hardness measurement of D2 Tool Steel metallographic samples after CHT and DCT.
Deep Cryogenic Treatment is having a minor effect on the hardness of D2 Tool Steel. DCT samples have slightly
higher hardness value than CHT sample. The DCT samples show a 1.26% improvement in hardness than CHT
samples. This can be allocated to the transformation of the small amount of retained austenite to martensite.

3.3 Distortion analysis and its mechanism

The dimensional deviations in size and shape caused by the vacuum heat treatment and deep cryogenic treatment
are shown in fig. 3 and 4 respectively. After tempering at 540 oC, retained austenite gets transformed into martensite.
This causes transformational stress. Thermal stresses are the result of quenching in hardening and cooling from
tempering temperature. Deviation in the dimensions and shape of vacuum heat treated Navy C-ring occurs due to the
combined effect of transformational stress and thermal stress. It is also clear that for deep cryogenically treated
conditions Navy C-ring shows the minimum deviation in size (outside diameter, thickness and gap width) and shape
(cylindricity) as compared to the vacuum heat-treated stage. The cryogenic conditioning of martensite on
progressive tempering causes the precipitation and uniform distribution of fine secondary carbides thereby relieving
the transformational stresses developed during quenching in conventional heat treatment. The minimum size
distortion in deep cryogenic treatment is allocated to the less transformational stresses. Deep cryogenic treatment
shows minimum shape distortion in cylindricity. However, it has major geometrical deviation in flatness and
roundness. Deep cryogenic treatment is controlled cooling and heating process. It involves lowering the temperature
of material from room temperature to -196oC to induce residual stresses of opposite nature which balance the earlier
quenching stresses and lead to overall lower residual stress level. This requires the part to deform plastically. In
Conventional quenching, the process takes place at higher temperature (from 1040 oC to 60oC) compared to that of
deep cryogenic quenching (from 30oC to -196oC). Because of this contrast in working temperature, the yield
strength of the material is considerably higher in deep cryogenic quenching than in conventional quenching and the
material is more difficult to be deformed plastically.
 Tushar Sonar et al. / Procedia Manufacturing 20 (2018) 113–118 117
Tushar Sonar et al.. / Procedia Manufacturing 00 (2017) 000–000 5

0.2
0.1632
0.1442
0.15
Distortion in mm

0.1 CHT DCT

0.05
0.0256
0.0129 0.0158 0.0151

0
OD ID Thickness Gap width
-0.0203 -0.0189
-0.05
CMM Dimensional Parameter

Fig. 3. Size distortion of AISI D2 Tool steel Navy C-ring

0.006
0.0049

0.004
0.002
0.002 0.0013
Distortion in mm

0 CHT
Flatness Cylindricity roundness DCT
-0.002 -0.00156

-0.004 -0.0034

-0.006 -0.0054
CMM Dimensional Parameter

Fig. 4. Shape distortion of AISI D2 Tool steel Navy C-ring

As a result of this, deep cryogenic quenching can’t create large enough residual stresses to counteract those
induced by conventional quenching [15]. Hence deep cryogenically treated navy C-ring shows higher shape
distortion than conventionally treated navy C-ring. The higher shape distortion is allocated to the unbalanced
residual stresses in deep cryogenically treated Navy C-ring.

4. Conclusion

Distortion potential of AISI D2 Tool steel subjected to vacuum heat treatment and deep cryogenic treatment is
investigated using Navy C-ring test. Deep cryogenic treatment results in minimum size (OD, thickness, gap width)
and shape distortion (cylindricity) as compared to vacuum heat treatment. However, it has higher shape distortion in
118 Tushar Sonar et al. / Procedia Manufacturing 20 (2018) 113–118
6 Tushar Sonar et al. / Procedia Manufacturing 00 (2017) 000–000

flatness and roundness. The reduced size distortion is imputed to the less transformational stresses and higher shape
distortion (flatness and roundness) to the unbalanced residual stresses. In deep cryogenic treatment reversed residual
stresses set due to thermal gradient during cryogenic quenching are not enough to balance the residual stresses
developed during quenching in vacuum heat treatment. The hardness of deep cryogenically treated sample is
increased by 1.26% due to the transmutation of retained austenite into martensite. There is 13.43% improvement in
surface finish of deep cryogenically treated AISI D2 Tool steel samples. The improved surface finish is also taken as
the measure of reduced distortion in deep cryogenic treatment.

Acknowledgements

The Author expresses sincere thanks to Measurewell Technologies Aurangabad for their support in CMM
measurement. Also, thanks to Kryospace Pune for Cryogenic Treatment service and MIT Material Research Center
Aurangabad for their support in research work.

References

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