[en] The abrasion behaviour of heat-treated 2.8C21Cr1Mo cast iron was studied. The specimens were destabilised at two temperatures, 980 and 1050 C, for 4 h, air hardened, and then tempered at five temperatures, 220, 320, 400, 500, and 620 C, for 2 h followed by air cooling. Using a pin-on-plate abrasion apparatus, the specimens were abraded on four types of bonded abrasives (silicon carbide, corundum, flint, and glass). The effect of work hardening on the abrasion resistance was investigated. It was found that the increase in alloy hardness produced by heat treatment had little effect on the abrasion resistance against silicon carbide or corundum; the inverse was true against flint or glass. The as-hardened structure containing 40% retained austenite gave the best abrasion resistance, whereas the hardened and tempered at 620 C showed the worst. Both bulk hardness and matrix hardness before wear correlated poorly with the abrasion resistance. Therefore, a general model ''equivalent hardness'' was developed, in which the hardness of the abraded matrix was considered. With this model, the abrasion behaviour can be clearly analysed.