The Essential Chemical Industry - online search Steel ‘Stoel is one of the most widely used materials, particularly in construction and engineering and in the manufacture of cas. It is estimated that there are over 20 billon tonnes of steel in use, equivalent to wel over 2 tonnes for every person on Earth. ‘Steels are alloys of iron, carbon and other metals and nor-metals. The composition ofthe steel is adjusted so that it has the precise properties needed, ‘The term allay steal is confined to steels containing some combination of one or more ofthe following elements: nickel, chromium, tungsten, molybdenum, vanadium, manganese, cobalt, copper, niobium, zirconium, selenium and lead. ‘Steels can be repeatedly recycied without any 1s of performance. Uses of steel ‘The construction industy fs @ main userof steel, rom smal buildings to huge bridges, and uses iin multiple ways, even within a single constructon. A bridge, for example, might use steelin the huge suspension ropes, the steel plate flooring forthe road, the beams forthe columns, and forthe safety barriers and Ighting columns. “Much stelis also used to reinforce concrete (Imaterials-and-appicatons/compositeshtmifconcrete Figure Uses of ta Inte UK. CCrromum increases the corrosion resistance of steel, and & minimum of 12% chromium is necessary to produce a stainless steel. The best known ofthe stainless steels contains about 74% ron, 18% chromium and 8% nickel (known a8 18-8 stainless). Stainloss steels pernaps most familar as ktchenware(airks, kettles and cuey). a sell Top‘Figures 2and 3 Both these seuetures used about 45 000 tonnes of tel in thelr constuction. ‘Figur 2 the barr across the ‘River Thames, to protect London | ‘rom Noodng. itis. system of _stlless steal plated hollow food gates. Byline Po Ting ‘Figure 31 he interwoven stuctire ofthe Olympe Sad in Bang ‘a of sta plata Unwrapped, the yin poms f Wr Sa cision ‘Seale used in such large constuctions are often produced from iron (Imetalsron hil which has been treated vith molten magn: (metalsmagnasium.ntml to remave sult ‘Steels containing molybdenum, vanadium, chromium and tungsten in various combinations produce vory hard, bill, stools. These are used, for example, in ell bits which noed to retain a cuting edge. Steals are used widely in the manufacture of electrical motor, power generators (nuclear, conventional fuels and wna). gears and engines, which have tobe very tough and withstand high temperatures. Figure 4 A wind turbine consructe rom soe ind pei ef iri St Aoi. ‘Stools wih cobalt are used as magnels and those wit nickel are used in the constructon of muck ‘There is a group of steels known as Advanced high Stongth Stools, AHSS, which are specially Leatod steels that can be roled very tin without losing the element of strength needed forthe specie purpose. They are particulary usefulin tre manufactur of cars, helping to reduce the ‘overall mass and thus decrease fuel consumption. reactors. ‘Steels wth a thn coating of th are used to make cans for beverages an fo0d. Steels coated in various ways wih ze are used in rotng, for ‘example, and in cars as the zine glves protecton against rusting (imetasizinchtmzinc).‘gure 8 Te container ship and te ‘containers are bot constructed fom stow pat, Bond pinion of Wl St vc, Annual production of steel ies 1821 foros ‘China| 04 milon tonnes Japan| 105 miton tonnes Incia | 89 millon tonnes us, | Tomilon ones Russia | 71 milon tomes Korea | 70 miton tonnes ‘Germany| 48 mllon tonnes Da fo Manufacture of steel ‘There are two main processes used to make steel, The Basic Oxygen Sloelmaking Process, whichis used forthe majorly of stl production, sos ion roshly produced from the bast furnace (motalsiron.himlsblast_furace) together with some scrap stosl The Electric Arc Fuace Process uses scrap stoolonly The Basic Oxygen Steelmaking Process Figure 6 lusting te Base Oxygen Steelmaking (805) Process. The process uses mode fumaces ined wit special bricks containing 80% ‘magnesium oxide and 10% carbon. These can take up 380 tonnes of ‘reactants and convert thm ose In ‘The furnace (also known as @ converter or vessel) it charged wih sloel scrap (up to about 30%) and moken ron trom a ladle, An oxygen lance, cooled by circulating wate, is lowered into the furnace and high puy oxygen i injected ito the vessel at wie the speed of sound which ‘ensures that all the impurtos are converted into ther oxides. The main chemical reactions are 20 +0, —» 2c0 Si+ 0, —> Sid, 2Mn +02 —» 2MnO 4P +50, —> 2P,0s a with tie excepton of he carbon monoxide, the products react wih ime, added during the oxygen blow, lo orm a sag. sell Top ‘The above reactions are allexothermic and controlled quantities of scrap ae added as a cookintto maintain the desked temperature.‘The steelat tis stage contains ca 0.04% carbon. The Electric Arc Furnace Process ‘Steel scrap i frst Upped from an overhead crane nto a fumace. The scrap comes fram three sources: + Home scrap: excess material from steel works and founees. + nasal scrap: trom processes using steel (such as excess steel from making 2 cr) + Obsolete serap: discarded used products (for example, used can). | en — | raised or bwered. These electrodes are massive, ‘The fumace is @crcular bath with a movable roof through which tree graphite electrodes a ‘often 6 m high and 4 m wide, and the furnace can hol! over 100 tannes of liquid stl ‘ier the steel scrap is placed in the fumace, the roots put into postion andthe electrodes lowered into the fumace. An arc i struck by passing fan electric current through the metal. The heat generated mets the sccap metal. Lime (as calcium oxide orcalcum carbonate), fLorspar (which helps o keep the hat slag a afd) and ion ore are added and these combine with impurites to form a slag. When the steelhnas reached the correct composton the slag is poured of and th steel:apped ‘rom the furnace Figure 8 The iid steels tapped (poured Inte 3 ade and he sag it ‘apped into a separate ‘slag pot. This ‘hoo shows later stage when the ead a an aggregate. Secondary steelmaking ‘The term secondary producton is offen used when refering to recycing iprocessestrecylng-nshe-chemicaHindusty himl'scrap) However. steeimaking the term secondary steeImaking refers tthe production of steels which are needed for spect purposes and which require the adlon of very carefully controls quantes of other elements Moten stot rom etter process is tansfered toa ladle where the alloying elements are added “The process provides pracse conto of harmlimpure (paréulaly sufur, phosphorus and, in some cases, race metals and hydrogen) by ‘adding materials ia lade injection, For example, aluminium and sicon are added to reduce any oxidized mater ‘Other techniques used fo help to improve the quay ofthe si gases (vacuum degassing) include siring (lacle string) and applying a vacuum tothe steel to remove Casting ‘Stools produced in ree forms, the form chosen being dependent on fs ulimate use +a slab long tek pce of metal wath a rectangular cross + a5 boom, long pec of metal ith a square cross-section + 8b, ilar to a loom but with a smaller cross-section Most steel's continuously castto the desired shape, buta smallauantiy (ca 10-20%) s frst cast into ingots which are cooled and then worked on ‘0 produce the shape required, ‘The casting isa vary precise set of processes. The follwing descrptions are an outine. ‘Continuous casting In contnuous casting, the stoe, stil motan from the furnace, is poured into a water-cooled mould (teaming from which Remorges as a strand eich i sothing atthe sutace. The sand passes tough a series of roles which are waler prayedo produce aso (ala, bbom bile) which is then sent tobe hot roled seo Top‘Figure toe tbe Is being produced na continuous casing process. Bind emo ef ri Se sion Ingot casting ‘Moton steal is poured into @ castiron mould to sol as an ingot. This generally weighs les than 20 lonnes but rotor forgings can weigh up to 1500 tonnes, \Whon th ingot has soi, the moulds removed. Each ingots of carefull pro-aranged dimensions and mass fom which arcles of the required size can be rolled. Rolling ‘Steel products are classified into Ma products and long products, Slabs of steel ae rolled to produce at prods or example steel sheet forthe constricton of ships. The shoots rolled further to produce thinner shee, used for example in te manufacture of cars. ‘looms and bles a used to ralllong bars of st stages to this pat ofthe process, ht ong, cold roling and drawing. Hotroling occurs when the slabs, blooms and bites are heated ina funace untl they are red hot (ca 1400 K) and then rolled untthey have acquied the desires shape. fr constuction and fr drawing into wires, ‘ofen there are th ‘The speod at which the hot stetis subsequently cootnd sa crucial factor, affecting the strength and other properos ofthe steel. Cooling fs done by spraying water as the steel passes through the rollers. ‘During this olin, oxygen inthe airhas reacted wth the hat ron to form a very thin layer of onl) oxide onthe surface. tis sluelgrey in colour {only when ts thicker does it appear red). This must be stipped from the surface prior to the next stage, otherwise the fnal product wil be ‘susceptible o rusting and unsuitable for galvanizing with zinc (Imotalszinchimlfznc) and other surface treatments ‘The stipping process is known as picking. The stelis passed through severalbaths of hycrochloric ace (sometimes suture acd) which dissolves the oxide without atiacking the metal. The spent acid is recycled (processesirecycing-inshe-chemicabndusty himlfspent_ ack). ‘The ‘pickled’ stools than subjected to cold roling. As the name impli, the steel, folowing hot rling, is rolled cold and gradually compressed to the equiad thickness. This improves the qualiy ofthe surface and also hardens the steel, On anneating (heating the sip very carefully), ean be pressed into shapes without cracking. Such sheetis used, fr example, to press out car bocies. Steel cans are pressed out wih sides and bottoms as a single entiy, needing only the top tobe ited afer fling, Very strong wires are produced by cold drawing Recycling “The recovery of scrap steal probably cons lagost scale ecycing process. The sap is ether pa ofthe charg ar ‘oxygen Process ois the compat charge forth Eecic Ae Furnace Process. tes the word 1e Basie [About 40% ofthe iron-containing materials used insteelproducton are now rom recycled sources. tis estimated tat recycing one tonne of too! saves 1.1 tonnes ofiron ore, 0.6 tonnes of coal and 0.5 lonnes af imestone, wit an overall anergy saving of 60-75% Date last amendea: 26th September 2018, (putnam Ushtpntnnttaaroe aAninvitation We invite you to wite fous fyou have any specific comments about ths ste, fr example ‘errs that you have found, suggestions for new topics or for adding tothe existing uns, ‘suggestions for inks to other stes and adtions or ltematves to our examples. Ploase send these comments to: ecl@essentalchemicalindusty.org (malto:eci@essentialchemicalindusty org) ‘This web sie Is produced by the Centre for Industry Education Collaboration, a non-proft organization and an integral pat ofthe Deparment of (Chemistry, University of York UK. Copyright © 2016 University af York Centre for Industry Edun Collaboration, York, UK. Al Rignts Reserved, a