The key difference between chrome vanadium and chrome molybdenum is that chrome vanadium contains chromium and vanadium as major alloying components, whereas chrome molybdenum contains chromium and molybdenum as alloying materials.
Chrome vanadium or chromium-vanadium steel is a group of steel alloy materials containing carbon, manganese, silicon, chromium, and vanadium. Chrome molybdenum is a type of steel alloy containing molybdenum and chromium as alloying elements.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Chrome Vanadium
3. What is Chrome Molybdenum
4. Chrome Vanadium vs Chrome Molybdenum in Tabular Form
4. Summary – Chrome Vanadium vs Chrome Molybdenum
What is Chrome Vanadium?
Chrome vanadium or chromium-vanadium steel is a group of steel alloy materials containing carbon, manganese, silicon, chromium, and vanadium. The symbol for this steel alloy type is Cr-V or CrV. The general composition of each component in chrome vanadium is as follows:
- Carbon 0.05%
- Manganese 0.70 – 0.90%
- Silicon 0.30%
- Chromium 0.80 – 1.10%
- Vanadium 0.18%
Figure 01: Chrome Vanadium Wrench
Some forms of chrome vanadium are useful as high-speed steel. It is a subset of tool steels that are used as cutting tool materials in common. Typically, both chromium and vanadium make the steel more hardenable. Further, chromium can keep the steel resistant to abrasion, oxidation, and corrosion. In addition, chromium and carbon can improve the elasticity of the steel material.
What is Chrome Molybdenum?
Chrome molybdenum is a type of steel alloy containing molybdenum and chromium as alloying elements. Usually, this term is shortened as chrome-moly to refer to industrial applications. It is a type of low alloy steel having many applications in different industries. In commercial-scale applications, this alloy material is named 41xx steel.
Figure 02: Appearance of Molybdenum
Chrome molybdenum has an excellent strength to weight ratio. Therefore, the material is considerably stronger and harder than standard steel types. However, we cannot easily weld this steel alloy, and it requires thermal treatment before and after the welding process in order to avoid any cold cracking.
Although chrome molybdenum contains chromium as an alloying element, the amount of chromium in the alloy is not enough for providing corrosion resistance to the steel alloy when compared to stainless steel. An important property of this alloy type is the ability to be case hardened through carburization of the surface. There, the core of the material tends to retain its bulk properties, and this steel grade is an excellent material for use in manufacturing gears, pistons, pins, and crankshafts.
What is the Difference Between Chrome Vanadium and Chrome Molybdenum?
Chrome vanadium and chrome molybdenum are two types of steel alloys having chromium as a major alloying component. The key difference between chrome vanadium and chrome molybdenum is that chrome vanadium contains chromium and vanadium as major alloying components, whereas chrome molybdenum contains chromium and molybdenum as alloying materials. Chrome vanadium alloy makes the steel more hardenable. The chromium in the alloy can keep the steel resistant to abrasion, oxidation and corrosion, and chromium and carbon can improve the elasticity of the steel material. Chrome molybdenum has an excellent strength to weight ratio but requires thermal treatment before and after the welding process in order to avoid any cold cracking.
The following table summarizes the difference between chrome vanadium and chrome molybdenum.
Summary – Chrome Vanadium vs Chrome Molybdenum
Chrome vanadium and chrome molybdenum are two types of steel alloys having chromium as a major alloying component. The key difference between chrome vanadium and chrome molybdenum is that chrome vanadium contains chromium and vanadium as major alloying components whereas chrome molybdenum contains chromium and molybdenum as alloying materials.
Reference:
1. “41Xx Steel.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 2 July 2020.
Image Courtesy:
1. “Chrome Vanadium Adjustable Wrench” By Photography by User: MrX (CC BY-SA 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “Molybdenum (42 Mo)” By Hi-Res Images of Chemical Elements -http://images-of-elements.com/molybdenum.php (CC BY 3.0) via Commons Wikimedia