One Morocco customer consults about the technical issues about the material for car injector nozzle. They have the problem that the final product is unstable due to the hardness of the material. They are using material bearing steel GCr015 (equivalent to DIN 100Cr6 / AISI 52100 ) and high speed steel W6Mo5Cr4V2 (equipvalent to AISI M2 / DIN 1.3343 ). But what is the best material for car injector nozzle ? Choose the right material for your application is more important than further heat treatment and other values.
Car injector nozzles are high-precision components. It requires extremely high wear resistance, corrosion resistance, and sufficient strength to withstand high-pressure environments. So, when selecting the materials used to manufacture the injector, we need to carefully consider those factors.
For this application, there are three common steel materials, that is, GCr15, 316L and M2.
GCr15 (100Cr6)
Advantages: GCr15 is a high-carbon chromium bearing steel with very good wear resistance and load-bearing capacity. It is suitable for environments that withstand high pressure, high rotational speed and a certain degree of impact.
Limitations: Its corrosion resistance is not as good as 316L, especially in environments containing corrosive chemicals or high salinity, GCr15 may not be the best choice.
316L stainless steel
Advantages: 316L is an austenitic stainless steel with a higher molybdenum content, providing excellent corrosion resistance, especially resistance to chlorides. Suitable for applications requiring higher corrosion resistance, such as chemical processing or marine environments.
Limitations: Compared with GCr15, 316L has poorer wear resistance and may not be suitable for long-term use in high-wear environments.
M2 high speed steel
Advantages: M2 is a tungsten-molybdenum high-speed steel with excellent wear resistance and good toughness. It maintains hardness and wear resistance at higher temperatures, making it suitable for manufacturing cutting tools and other parts that require high wear resistance.
Limitations: Although M2’s wear resistance is worse than 316L, its corrosion resistance is not as good as 316L, and its cost is higher than GCr15 and 316L.
Analyze and Comprision
- Wear resistance: GCr15 and M2 provide excellent wear resistance, which is an important factor for fuel injectors because the fuel injector needs to maintain precise injection performance, especially in high-speed motion and high-pressure fuel environments. The essential.
- Corrosion resistance: 316L performs best in terms of corrosion resistance and is suitable for use in environments where there may be exposure to corrosive substances. However, considering that fuel injectors are primarily exposed to fuel rather than corrosive chemicals, corrosion resistance, while important, may not be the primary consideration.
- Cost: GCr15 is generally the lowest cost among the three materials, while M2 is relatively expensive due to its special alloy composition and production process.
For car injector nozzles, GCr15 (100Cr6) may be the first choice among the three materials due to its excellent wear resistance and cost-effectiveness. Although 316L offers better corrosion resistance, in typical applications of fuel injectors, wear resistance is more critical.
M2 is suitable for high-end applications due to its excellent wear resistance and performance stability at high temperatures, but higher cost may be a consideration.
316L is suitable for specific corrosive environments due to its excellent corrosion resistance, but it is not suitable for conventional automotive fuel injection.
How to solve the problem – product not stable due to hardness of material ? Consider even high end material.
If the application environment requires the material to have extremely high wear resistance and/or maintain performance at high temperatures, M35 or M42 high speed steel may be a better choice. Both materials belong to the high-speed steel (HSS) family, but they differ in chemical composition and properties, especially the cobalt (Co) content, which has a significant impact on their performance.
M35 high speed steel
M35 is a cobalt-alloyed high-speed steel with a cobalt content usually around 5%. The addition of cobalt significantly increases the material’s thermal hardness, which means the material can maintain hardness and cutting performance at high temperatures. M35 is therefore suitable for applications requiring high thermal stability. Its wear resistance and toughness are very good, but if compared with M42, M35’s thermal stability is slightly lower.
M42 high speed steel
M42 high-speed steel contains a higher proportion of cobalt, generally above 8%, which gives it the best hot hardness among all high-speed steels. It maintains hardness and strength at higher temperatures, so M42 provides better performance for tools and parts that need to operate in high-temperature environments, such as high-end fuel injectors. In addition, M42 has excellent wear resistance and is suitable for applications under extreme wear conditions.
Performance comparison
- Wear resistance: M42 provides better wear resistance due to its higher cobalt content, which is very important for injectors that often come into contact with high-hardness materials.
- Thermal stability: M42 has better thermal stability than M35, allowing it to maintain better performance in high-temperature environments (such as inside the engine).
- Processing performance: Although M42 is relatively difficult to process, its excellent wear resistance and thermal stability can provide longer service life and better performance for manufacturing high-precision injector components.
Conclusion
For high-end car injector nozzle products, M42 is usually the better choice due to its superior wear resistance and thermal stability. It is suitable for high-temperature, high-wear application environments. It can provide longer service life and higher reliability. However, cost and processing difficulty also need to be considered when choosing, because M42 is more expensive and more complex to process than M35. In general, if the project budget and technical capabilities allow, M42 is a better material choice for high-end injector products that require extreme performance.
If you just need steel materials for the common use, you could just choose GCr15 steel, but if you would need it for high end car injector nozzle product, you could use M35 or M42.
At Otai, we can supply you all those options materials. If you need some price offer for reference, you please send us inquiries anytime.
- Availablility: GCr15 (available in stock) > M2 (some sizes available in stock) > M35 & M42 （ usually needs new production with MOQ of 200-500 kgs per size）
- Price & Cost: GCr15 < M2 < M35 < M42
If you have any technical issue on steel materials, you please feel free to contact us at email Jeremy@otaisteel.com or just send us WhatsApp message.
