SAE-AISI A3 (T30103) Air-Hardening Steel

SAE-AISI A3 steel is a tool steel. A3 is the designation in both the SAE and AISI systems for this material. T30103 is the UNS number.

The properties of SAE-AISI A3 steel include two common variations. This page shows summary ranges across both of them. For more specific values, follow the links immediately below. The graph bars on the material properties cards further below compare SAE-AISI A3 steel to: tool 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.

Annealed A3 Tool Steel Hardened A3 Tool Steel

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus

190 GPa 27 x 10⁶ psi

Poisson's Ratio

0.29

Shear Modulus

73 GPa 11 x 10⁶ psi

Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS)

700 to 2150 MPa 100 to 310 x 10³ psi

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion

260 J/g

Melting Completion (Liquidus)

1450 °C 2650 °F

Melting Onset (Solidus)

1410 °C 2570 °F

Specific Heat Capacity

470 J/kg-K 0.11 BTU/lb-°F

Thermal Conductivity

37 W/m-K 21 BTU/h-ft-°F

Thermal Expansion

12 µm/m-K

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume

8.3 % IACS

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific)

9.7 % IACS

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price

6.0 % relative

Density

7.8 g/cm³ 480 lb/ft³

Embodied Carbon

4.4 kg CO₂/kg material

Embodied Energy

67 MJ/kg 29 x 10³ BTU/lb

Embodied Water

78 L/kg 9.3 gal/lb

Common Calculations

PREN (Pitting Resistance)

8.9

Stiffness to Weight: Axial

14 points

Stiffness to Weight: Bending

25 points

Strength to Weight: Axial

25 to 77 points

Strength to Weight: Bending

23 to 48 points

Thermal Diffusivity

10 mm²/s

Thermal Shock Resistance

23 to 70 points

Alloy Composition

Iron (Fe)Fe		88.7 to 92
Chromium (Cr)Cr		4.8 to 5.5
Carbon (C)C		1.2 to 1.3
Molybdenum (Mo)Mo		0.9 to 1.4
Vanadium (V)V		0.8 to 1.4
Manganese (Mn)Mn		0.4 to 0.6
Silicon (Si)Si		0 to 0.5
Nickel (Ni)Ni		0 to 0.3
Copper (Cu)Cu		0 to 0.25
Phosphorus (P)P		0 to 0.030
Sulfur (S)S		0 to 0.030