SAE-AISI H12 (T20812) Chromium Hot-Work Steel

SAE-AISI H12 steel is a tool steel. H12 is the designation in both the SAE and AISI systems for this material. T20812 is the UNS number.

The properties of SAE-AISI H12 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 H12 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 H12 Tool Steel Hardened H12 Tool Steel

Mechanical Properties

Elastic (Young's, Tensile) Modulus

190 GPa 28 x 10⁶ psi

Poisson's Ratio

0.29

Shear Modulus

75 GPa 11 x 10⁶ psi

Tensile Strength: Ultimate (UTS)

690 to 1850 MPa 100 to 270 x 10³ psi

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion

270 J/g

Melting Completion (Liquidus)

1480 °C 2700 °F

Melting Onset (Solidus)

1440 °C 2620 °F

Specific Heat Capacity

470 J/kg-K 0.11 BTU/lb-°F

Thermal Conductivity

36 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)

9.5 % IACS

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price

9.0 % relative

Density

7.9 g/cm³ 490 lb/ft³

Embodied Carbon

2.9 kg CO₂/kg material

Embodied Energy

41 MJ/kg 18 x 10³ BTU/lb

Embodied Water

76 L/kg 9.0 gal/lb

Common Calculations

PREN (Pitting Resistance)

Stiffness to Weight: Axial

14 points

Stiffness to Weight: Bending

24 points

Strength to Weight: Axial

24 to 65 points

Strength to Weight: Bending

22 to 42 points

Thermal Diffusivity

9.8 mm²/s

Thermal Shock Resistance

22 to 60 points

Alloy Composition

Iron (Fe)Fe		87.8 to 91.7
Chromium (Cr)Cr		4.8 to 5.5
Molybdenum (Mo)Mo		1.3 to 1.8
Tungsten (W)W		1.0 to 1.7
Silicon (Si)Si		0.8 to 1.2
Carbon (C)C		0.3 to 0.4
Manganese (Mn)Mn		0.2 to 0.5
Vanadium (V)V		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