Performance evaluation of hot stamped boron steel after die punching

The service performance of hot stamped ultra-high strength steel after die punching was evaluated in this paper through typical experiments, including tensile tests, bending tests, and hydrogen embrittlement tests, as well as characterization analysis. The tested samples were prepared through a specially designed tool by considering different die clearances, punch corner radii, and punch shapes. The results showed that the tensile properties are closely related with the selected punching parameters, while the bending properties and hydrogen embrittlement susceptibility are less sensitive to parameters. Furthermore, the laser cutting method was also involved to produce holes on hot stamped parts and compared with the punching samples. It was found that the laser cutting samples performed better in terms of tensile properties and hydrogen embrittlement susceptibility, which were due to the effects of annealing treatment during laser cutting that decreases the material hardness and brings compressive residual stress near the cutting surface, while the bending properties are insensitive to different drilling methods.