A high temperature mechanical study on PH 13-8 Mo maraging steel

High temperature mechanical measurements were conducted to study the effect of the dynamic precipitation process of PH 13-8 Mo maraging steel. Yield stress, ultimate tensile strength, total elongation, hardness, strain rate sensitivity and activation volume were evaluated as a function of the temperature. The dynamic changes in the mechanical properties at different temperatures were evaluated and a balance between precipitation hardening and annealed softening is discussed. A comparison between hardness and yield stress and ultimate tensile strength over a temperature range from 300 to 600 °C is made. The behavior of the strain rate sensitivity was correlated with the intermetallic precipitates formed during the experiments.