The Making of the Valyrian Steel Blade

Valyrian steel blade is a formidable weapon of Westeros based on the novel A Song of Fire and Ice. Weapons made from Valyrian steel are known to possess unparalleled qualities such as being strong, lightweight, hard, sharp, and untarnished. Forging this material into a weapon requires the assistance of dragon flame and the secret metalworking skills of blacksmiths. Similarly, today’s blade forging process involves heat treatment and forming techniques to unlock its superior performance. The focus of my Ph.D. research is on the optimization of heat treatment of additively manufactured 420 stainless steel (AM 420-SS) in attaining its Valyrian steel-like properties. A tube furnace serves as one of the fundamental instrument in finding the optimum temperature, time and heating rate to control the microstructures that dictates the mechanical properties. In the aerospace industry, the search for the fourth generation of ultra-high-performance steels is the current undertaking for lightweight and complex structural components of future aerial vehicles. These materials are expected to have high combinations of strength, ductility, and toughness imbibed with a “stainless” feature for long service life. The AM 420-SS has a significant potential to serve as the contemporary counterpart to Valyrian steel blades.