STEEL FOR MECHANICAL STRUCTURE EXCELLING IN STRENGTH, DUCTILITY AND TOUGHNESS AND PROCESS FOR PRODUCING THE SAME

摘要

A steel for machine structural use with a better strength-ductility-toughness balance than maraging steel and applications thereof are provided. The steel for machine structural use with excellent strength, ductility, and toughness contains, in percent by mass, more than 0.30% to 0.5% of carbon, 1.0% or less of silicon, 1.5% or less of manganese, 0.025% or less of aluminum, 0.3% to 0.5% of molybdenum, and 0.0005% to 0.01% of boron, and the balance is iron and incidental impurities. The steel has a structure including at least 90% by volume of martensitic structure. The martensitic structure includes blocks having a size of 1.5 µm or less. Dissolved boron is contained in an amount of at least 0.0005% and is present at boundaries of prior austenite grains in a concentration at least 1.5 times that in the prior austenite grains.