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EN 1.5503 (18B2) Boron Steel

EN 1.5503 steel is an alloy steel formulated for primary forming into wrought products. 1.5503 is the EN numeric designation for this material. 18B2 is the EN chemical designation.

It has a very low base cost among EN wrought alloy steels. In addition, it has a very low electrical conductivity and a very high thermal conductivity.

The properties of EN 1.5503 steel include four common variations. This page shows summary ranges across all of them. For more specific values, follow the links immediately below. The graph bars on the material properties cards further below compare EN 1.5503 steel to: EN wrought alloy steels (top), all iron alloys (middle), and the entire database (bottom). A full bar means this is the highest value in the relevant set. A half-full bar means it's 50% of the highest, and so on.

Mechanical Properties

Brinell Hardness

120 to 160

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus

190 GPa 27 x 106 psi

Elongation at Break

12 to 17 %

Fatigue Strength

180 to 280 MPa 26 to 41 x 103 psi

Poisson's Ratio

0.29

Reduction in Area

63 to 72 %

Shear Modulus

73 GPa 11 x 106 psi

Shear Strength

270 to 320 MPa 40 to 47 x 103 psi

Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS)

400 to 520 MPa 57 to 76 x 103 psi

Tensile Strength: Yield (Proof)

270 to 430 MPa 40 to 62 x 103 psi

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion

250 J/g

Maximum Temperature: Mechanical

400 °C 750 °F

Melting Completion (Liquidus)

1460 °C 2660 °F

Melting Onset (Solidus)

1420 °C 2590 °F

Specific Heat Capacity

470 J/kg-K 0.11 BTU/lb-°F

Thermal Conductivity

52 W/m-K 30 BTU/h-ft-°F

Thermal Expansion

13 µm/m-K

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume

7.0 % IACS

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific)

8.1 % IACS

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price

1.8 % relative

Density

7.8 g/cm3 490 lb/ft3

Embodied Carbon

1.4 kg CO2/kg material

Embodied Energy

18 MJ/kg 7.9 x 103 BTU/lb

Embodied Water

46 L/kg 5.5 gal/lb

Common Calculations

Resilience: Ultimate (Unit Rupture Work)

41 to 81 MJ/m3

Resilience: Unit (Modulus of Resilience)

200 to 490 kJ/m3

Stiffness to Weight: Axial

13 points

Stiffness to Weight: Bending

24 points

Strength to Weight: Axial

14 to 19 points

Strength to Weight: Bending

15 to 18 points

Thermal Diffusivity

14 mm2/s

Thermal Shock Resistance

12 to 15 points

Alloy Composition

Among alloy steels, the composition of EN 1.5503 steel is notable for including boron (B). Boron is used to improve hardenability. It has a substantial effect when added in even tiny amounts.

Iron (Fe)Fe 98.4 to 99.239
Manganese (Mn)Mn 0.6 to 0.8
Carbon (C)C 0.16 to 0.2
Silicon (Si)Si 0 to 0.3
Copper (Cu)Cu 0 to 0.25
Phosphorus (P)P 0 to 0.025
Sulfur (S)S 0 to 0.025
Boron (B)B 0.00080 to 0.0050

All values are % weight. Ranges represent what is permitted under applicable standards.

Followup Questions

Similar Alloys

Further Reading

Boron in Steel, S. K. Banerji and J. E. Morral (editors), 1980

EN 10263-3: Steel rod, bars and wire for cold heading and cold extrusion - Part 3: Technical delivery conditions for case hardening steels

ASM Specialty Handbook: Carbon and Alloy Steels, J. R. Davis (editor), 1996

Manufacture and Uses of Alloy Steels, Henry D. Hibbard, 2005

Ferrous Materials: Steel and Cast Iron, Hans Berns and Werner Theisen, 2008

Steels: Processing, Structure, and Performance, 2nd ed., George Krauss, 2015