JFE Steel Corporation has recently developed FM800, a nickel-free alloyed steel powder offering 800 MPa-class tensile strength when sintered in a mesh-belt furnace, suitable for powder-metallurgy applications.
FM800 is an unprecedented alloyed steel powder that is prealloyed with 3% copper and 1.3% molybdenum, resulting in high tensile strength in the 800 MPa range when mesh-belt sintered. Moreover, whereas prealloying with alloy elements can reduce the compressibility of powder, JFE Steel has successfully achieved higher compressibility by controlling the production process. FM800’s advantages are expected to be utilized for the manufacture of automotive and construction-equipment parts.
In the case of 800 MPa-class tensile strength, however, nickel-free alloyed steel powder previously had to undergo carburization heat treatment, but JFE Steel’s development team has been able to eliminate this step to help customers reduce costs.
