Cryogenic Treatment and Its Effect on The Microstructure and Corrosion Behavior for Properties Enhancement of D3 Tool Steel for Blade Application
Nur Maizatul Shima Adzali, Zuraidawani Che Daud, Nur Hidayah Ahmad Zaidi, Siti Emy Elysha Mohd Daud, Tuan Ummi Alifah Tuan Ali
Abstract. This study investigates the microstructural characteristics, properties, and corrosion behavior of D3 tool steel, focusing on the effects of cryogenic treatment for blade applications. The study involved three batches of samples: untreated, heat-treated with cryogenic treatment, and heat-treated without cryogenic treatment. Untreated samples were controlled samples while heat-treated samples were austenitized at 1000°C for 30 minutes, oil quenched at 980°C for 20 minutes, and tempered at 150°C and 280°C for 90 minutes, followed by air cooling. A subset of heat-treated samples underwent additional cryogenic treatment by immersion in liquid nitrogen at -196°C for 24 hours. Comprehensive analysis using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and Rockwell Hardness testing was conducted before and after a corrosion test in 3.5% NaCl. The corrosion rate was measured using the weight loss method. The microstructural analysis revealed that untreated D3 steel consisted of pearlite, ferrite, and irregular carbide particles. Quenching transformed retained austenite into martensite, and cryogenic treatment refined the microstructure further, enhancing hardness. Tempering after cryogenic treatment reduced hardness but improved ductility. Heat-treated D3 steel tempered at 150°C exhibited the highest hardness (53.6 HRC). Corrosion tests showed that untreated, heat-treated with cryogenic and tempered at 150°C, and heat-treated with cryogenic and tempered at 280°C samples had lower corrosion rates compared to both heat-treated samples. Ultimately, cryogenic treated samples tempered at 280°C (HTC280) demonstrated optimal characteristics for blade applications, and balancing hardness (50.2 HRC) with superior corrosion resistance for prolonged performance in corrosive environments.
Keywords
Corrosion, Cryogenic, D3 Tool Steel, Microstructure
Published online 1/15/2026, 8 pages
Copyright © 2026 by the author(s)
Published under license by Materials Research Forum LLC., Millersville PA, USA
Citation: Nur Maizatul Shima Adzali, Zuraidawani Che Daud, Nur Hidayah Ahmad Zaidi, Siti Emy Elysha Mohd Daud, Tuan Ummi Alifah Tuan Ali, Cryogenic Treatment and Its Effect on The Microstructure and Corrosion Behavior for Properties Enhancement of D3 Tool Steel for Blade Application, Materials Research Proceedings, Vol. 60, pp 42-50, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.21741/9781644903971-6
The article was published as article 6 of the book Frontiers of Chemical and Materials Engineering
Content from this work may be used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license. Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI.
References
[1] S. Saad Ghazi and K. Mijbel Mashloosh, Influence of Heat Treatment on Resistance of Wear and Mechanical Properties of Die Steel Kind D3, (2015). doi.org:10.5251/ajsir.2015.6.2.33.40.
[2] A. Bhateja, A. Varma, A. Kashyap, and B. Singh, Study the Effect on the Hardness of Three Sample Grades of Tool Steel i.e., and D3 after Heat Treatment Processes Such as Annealing, Normalizing, and Hardening & Tempering (2012) 253-259. ISSN: 2319-1813 ISBN: 2319-1805.
[3] A. Wale and V. Wakchaure, Effect of Cryogenic Treatment on Mechanical Properties of Cold Work Tool Steels (2013) 149-154. ISSN: 2249-6645.
[4] S. Kumar, M. Nagaraj, A. Bongale, and N. K. Khedkar, Effect of deep cryogenic treatment on the mechanical properties of AISI D3 tool steel (2019). DOI: 10.1504/IJMATEI.2019.099789 https://doi.org/10.1504/IJMATEI.2019.099789
[5] M. May, Corrosion behavior of mild steel immersed in different concentrations of NaCl, Journal of Sebha University-(Pure and Applied Sciences), Vol.15 No.1 (2016). 1-12.
[6] M. A. Mochtar, W. N. Putra, and M. Abram, Effect of tempering temperature and subzero treatment on microstructures, retained austenite, Mater Res Express, vol. 10, no. 5 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1088/2053-1591/acd61b
[7] N. W. Khun, E. Liu, A. W. Y. Tan, Effects of deep cryogenic treatment on mechanical and tribological properties of AISI D3 tool steel, Friction, vol. 3 (3) (2015) 234-242. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40544-015-0089-z
[8] P. Jovičević-Klug, T. Kranjec, M. Jovičević-Klug, Influence of the deep cryogenic treatment on AISI 52100 and AISI D3 steel’s corrosion resistance, Materials, vol. 14, no. 21 (2021) 6357. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma14216357
[9] J. X. Zou, T. Grosdidier, B. Bolle, K. M. Zhang, and C. Dong, Texture and microstructure at the surface of an AISI D2 steel treated by high current pulsed electron beam, Metall Mater Trans A Phys Metall Mater Sci, vol. 38 A (9) (2007) 2061-2071. doi.org: 10.1007/s11661-007-9146-1. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-007-9146-1
[10] K. Amini, A. Akhbarizadeh & S. Javadpour. Effect of Carbide Distribution on Corrosion Behavior of the Deep Cryogenically Treated Steel, J Mater Eng Perform, vol. 25(2) (2016) 365-373. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11665-015-1858-6
