SAE-AISI P3 (T51603) Low-Carbon Mould Steel

SAE-AISI P3 steel is a tool steel. P3 is the designation in both the SAE and AISI systems for this material. T51603 is the UNS number.

The properties of SAE-AISI P3 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 P3 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 P3 Tool Steel Hardened P3 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)

410 to 1980 MPa 60 to 290 x 10³ psi

Thermal Properties

Latent Heat of Fusion

250 J/g

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

46 W/m-K 26 BTU/h-ft-°F

Thermal Expansion

12 µm/m-K

Electrical Properties

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Volume

7.3 % IACS

Electrical Conductivity: Equal Weight (Specific)

8.3 % IACS

Otherwise Unclassified Properties

Base Metal Price

2.8 % relative

Density

7.9 g/cm³ 490 lb/ft³

Embodied Carbon

1.5 kg CO₂/kg material

Embodied Energy

20 MJ/kg 8.7 x 10³ BTU/lb

Embodied Water

50 L/kg 6.0 gal/lb

Common Calculations

Stiffness to Weight: Axial

13 points

Stiffness to Weight: Bending

24 points

Strength to Weight: Axial

15 to 70 points

Strength to Weight: Bending

16 to 44 points

Thermal Diffusivity

12 mm²/s

Thermal Shock Resistance

14 to 65 points

Alloy Composition

Iron (Fe)Fe		96.3 to 98.4
Nickel (Ni)Ni		1.0 to 1.5
Chromium (Cr)Cr		0.4 to 0.75
Manganese (Mn)Mn		0.2 to 0.6
Silicon (Si)Si		0 to 0.4
Copper (Cu)Cu		0 to 0.25
Carbon (C)C		0 to 0.1
Phosphorus (P)P		0 to 0.030
Sulfur (S)S		0 to 0.030