Influence of Tool Material and Surface Roughness on Galling Resistance in Sliding Against Austenitic Stainless Steel

Transfer and accumulation of adhered sheet material, generally referred to as galling, is a major cause for tool failure in sheet metal forming. In the present work, the galling resistance of three different tool materials was evaluated in lubricated sliding against austenitic stainless steel using a SOFS tribometer. All tool materials were prepared to four different surface roughnesses, ranging from a polished surface with R _a = 0.05 μm to a ground surface with R _a = 0.3 μm. The overall best performance was obtained for polished nitrogen alloyed powder metallurgy (PM) tool steel, where galling was detected only at the highest load evaluated, 700 N. However, for both the D2 type tool steel and nodular iron, best performance was observed for the surface possessing a surface roughness of 0.1 μm. The improved galling resistance for the rougher surfaces was related to filling of grinding scratches with sheet material during the initial stage of sliding, prolonging the development of protruding sheet material on the tools surface. Similar trend was not observed for the PM steel, which was related to width of the scratches originating from the surface preparation, in relation to tool microstructure.