Brazil has developed a wide range of tool steels, stainless steels, and alloy steels for use in diverse applications. These alloys are used for various products such as cutting tools, dies, molds, and other ancillary components. Tool steels have many desirable characteristics, such as high wear resistance, excellent toughness, excellent machinability and outstanding resilience to heat treatment. These unique properties make them the ideal choice for many applications. The following sections will discuss the various properties of tool steels and grade designations.
Tool steels are characterized by their carbon content, with lower levels of carbon providing higher hardness and strength and higher levels of carbon providing greater hardness and higher wear resistance. The alloying elements added to the steel provide additional characteristics such as higher toughness and higher wear resistance. The most common alloying elements are chromium (Cr), molybdenum (Mo), and vanadium (V). Tool steels often contain other alloying elements such as cobalt (Co), tungsten (W), and niobium (Nb).
Tool steels are available in different grades that are defined by the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI). These designations help to identify the alloy content and the grade of the steel. Each grade of tool steel is identified by a four-digit number, following the “AISI” designation. For example, AISI 4140 is a low-alloy, chromium molybdenum steel and is identified as a Grade 4140 tool steel. In addition to their grade identification, AISI tool steels are designated with a letter following the number; L designates a low alloy steel, H designates a high speed steel, and T designates a tungsten tool steel.
Brazil is well-known for its excellent quality and highly varied types of tool steels, stainless steels, and alloy steels, making it the ideal source for these steels. The tool steels available from the country range from basic, unalloyed tool steels that provide excellent levels of wear resistance and strength to sophisticated, alloyed tool steels with various levels of alloying elements. Common grades of tool steels from Brazil include: AISI 1095, AISI 1050, AISI O1, AISI D2, AISI H13, and AISI 4140. The Brazilian tool steels have superior strength, hardness and impact resistance, making them perfect for any demanding project.
Brazils stainless steels are popularly used in the food, medical and automotive industries because of their corrosion resistance, strength, quality and aesthetics. Common grades of stainless steel from Brazil include: AISI 304, AISI 316L, AISI 420 and AISI 431. These steels are available in different forms, such as plates, bars, sheets, pipes and fittings. The country also produces high-quality alloy steels with excellent physical, mechanical and corrosion-resistant properties.
Brazil produces very high-quality alloy steels used in a variety of industrial applications. The most common grades of alloy steel used in Brazil are alloyed with chromium, molybdenum, and vanadium. These steels are very good for high strength applications and have superior toughness, strength and wear resistance. Common grades of alloy steels from Brazil include: AISI 4130, AISI 4140 and AISI 4340.
Tool steels, stainless steels and alloy steels are essential materials for the successful production of many products. Brazil is a reliable source of these materials, thanks to its superior quality and wide variety of grades. Regardless of the application, Brazil produces tool steels, stainless steels, and alloy steels with the ideal properties for any individual project.
