Martensite is a steel magnetic structure formed by quenching austenite at a relatively high speed. Because the speed is too fast, the carbon atoms do not have time to diffuse out of the crystal structure in a large enough amount to form cementite. After quenching, the austenite transforms into a strongly strained structure supersaturated with carbon, thereby achieving improved mechanical strength and purpose of hardness.
Maraging steel is a low carbon iron-nickel alloy with a nickel content of about 18%, and can also be alloyed with cobalt, molybdenum, titanium and other non-ferrous metals.
These alloys are quenched to form martensite and then subjected to a precipitation hardening heat treatment at 480°C to 500°C to promote the precipitation of intermetallic compounds such as Ni3Mo and Ni3Ti.
The ideal properties of maraging steel are: first, it has ultra-high strength at room temperature, and minimal deformation can be guaranteed after simple heat treatment;
Second, it has excellent fracture toughness compared with quenched and tempered steels of similar strength levels Excellent solderability, easy to manufacture.
These steels have high fracture toughness, and their impact fatigue strength indicates that they can effectively handle repeated impact loads, such as those found in electromechanical components.
The lower heat treatment temperature allows the deformation to be much smaller than that of hardenable low alloy steels, making it ideal for long and thin parts. Maraging steel is commonly used in the manufacture of aircraft landing gear, and is also used extensively in the face and entire head of advanced golf clubs.
