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Steels
Abstract:
The American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) defines carbon steel as follows:Steel is
considered to be carbon steel when no minimum content is specified or required for
chromium, cobalt, columbium [niobium], molybdenum, nickel, titanium, tungsten,
vanadium or zirconium, or any other element to be added to obtain a desired alloying
effect; when the specified minimum for copper does not exceed 0.40 per cent; or when
the maximum content specified for any of the following elements does not exceed the
percentages noted: manganese 1.65, silicon 0.60, copper 0.60.
Steels can be classified by a variety of different systems depending on:
Low-alloy Steels
Low-alloy steels constitute a category of ferrous materials that exhibit mechanical properties superior
to plain carbon steels as the result of additions of alloying elements such as nickel, chromium, and
molybdenum. Total alloy content can range from 2.07% up to levels just below that of stainless
steels, which contain a minimum of 10% Cr.
For many low-alloy steels, the primary function of the alloying elements is to increase hardenability
in order to optimize mechanical properties and toughness after heat treatment. In some cases,
however, alloy additions are used to reduce environmental degradation under certain specified
service conditions.
As with steels in general, low-alloy steels can be classified according to:
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Alloy Designatio Principal Design Features Applications
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Alloy Designatio Principal Design Features Applications
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Alloy Principal Design Features Applications
Designation
Is carbon steel better than mild steel? Trick question! Mild steel is a type of carbon
steel. The element carbon is present in all steel. Whenever this carbon is the main
alloying element, the alloy is considered a carbon steel. “Low-carbon” steel is another
name for mild steel. There are other carbons steels, of different carbon contents. Which
one is better depends on the application the steel will be used for.
Over 1.5 billion tons of steel are produced every year to make products as diverse as
sewing needles and structural beams for skyscrapers. Carbon steels are the most
commonly used steel alloys, making up approximately 85% of all production in the US.
The carbon content of the product is in the 0–2% range. This carbon affects the
microstructure of the steel, giving it legendary strength and toughness. These alloys
also contain small amounts of manganese, silicon, and copper. Mild steel is a
commercial term for low carbon steel, where the carbon content is in the 0.04–0.3%
range.
Mild steel has exceptional ductility and are used for pipelines that transport oil, gas, or water.
1. Primary steelmaking
2. Secondary steelmaking
3. Casting
These are followed by various finishing techniques that have a direct effect on the final
product characteristics.
Steel is produced in a blast furnace, and then the molten steel is tapped from the furnace into
ladles or steel baths for further processing.
1. Primary steelmaking
Steel can either be made from 100% recycled material or from a combination of
recycled material and virgin steel. Virgin steel is produced in a blast furnace from iron
ore, coke (produced from coal), and lime. The raw materials are added to the top of the
furnace, which operates at 3000°F. As the iron ore melts and mixes with the burning
coke, carbon is released into the molten product. Impurities are absorbed by lime into a
slag on the surface, which can be skimmed from the liquid steel. The product at this
stage contains about 4% carbon and still has some impurities present. Molten virgin
steel is transferred to the basic oxygen furnace (BOF), which already contains recycled
scrap metal. Pure oxygen is blown through the liquid steel to oxidize the excess carbon,
forming a finished product with up to 1.5% carbon content.
2. Secondary steelmaking
Market demands for higher-quality steel products and consistent properties have fueled
the development of secondary steelmaking processes.
Stirring
Ladle furnace
Ladle injection
Inert gas is injected into the bottom of the steel bath. As the gas heats up
and rises through the molten steel, a stirring effect is achieved.
Degassing
Removes hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen, while also reducing the sulphur
content of the product. Various techniques used to degas molten steel
including vacuums, inert gas injection, and temperature control.
Stirring is achieved by injecting argon gas into the sealed steel bath. A
snorkel arrangement prevents the slag from being disturbed while hydrogen
content is reduced and oxide inclusions are floated to the surface. Oxygen
is fed to the bath through a lance and aluminum is added through the
snorkel giving an increased level of temperature control and accurate final
composition.
Deoxidizing steel
A critical aspect of secondary steelmaking is the removal of oxygen. The presence of
oxygen in molten steel as it begins to solidify results in a reaction with carbon to release
carbon monoxide gas. Controlling deoxidation can be used to alter the characteristics of
the finished product and therefore the suitability of the steel to be used for different
applications.
Rimming steels
Capped steels
Capped steels follow the same pattern as rimming initially, but after about a
minute, the mold is capped to suppress the formation of carbon monoxide.
Semi-killed steels
Semi-killed steels have been partially deoxidized prior to pouring into the
mold and usually have carbon content in the range of 0.15–0.3%.
Killed steels
Killed steels have been fully deoxidized such that there is no formation of
carbon monoxide at all during solidification. The finished product has a
homogeneous structure and no blowholes. Aluminum is added into the
ladle or mold as a primary deoxidizer to “kill” the formation of carbon
monoxide; however, there are applications where the addition of aluminum
to the finished product is undesirable. Alternatives to aluminum are
ferroalloys of manganese and silicon or calcium silicide.
3. Casting
Traditional casting methods involve the lifting of the ladle by crane so that molten steel
can be teemed into individual molds mounted on rail cars. Ingot molds are tapered
slightly to facilitate removal of the ingots after solidification. Ingots are transferred to
soaking pits where they are reheated for hot rolling.
Casting machines enable continuous casting of molten steel into shapes more suitable
for downstream processing. Ladles are lifted to an elevated platform where they
discharge the molten steel into a tundish, which feeds the casting machine. Molten steel
is fed from the tundish into a water-cooled mold with a movable bottom plate. As the
steel skin solidifies, the plate is slowly lowered allowing more molten steel to enter the
mold. Steel is formed into slabs, blooms, or billets in a continuous casting machine. The
solidified product is pulled by rollers before being straightened and cut at the end of the
machine. This process can continue for days or weeks without interruption.
Product rolling
Solid cast ingots must be rolled into more useful shapes and sizes like those produced
by continuous casting. Steel is compressed and pulled by rotating rolls. The rolls rotate
at a faster pace than the steel as it enters the machine, therefore thrusting the steel
forward and compressing it.
Carbon steel is hot rolled into steel strips.
Hot forming
Steel is heated above the recrystallization temperature to break up the as-cast
microstructure. This yields a more uniform grain size and even distribution of carbon
within the steel.
Cold forming increases the strength of carbon steel while improving the finish and allowing
tighter tolerances.
Cold forming
Cold forming is carried out below the recrystallization temperature. This process
increases the strength through strain hardening by up to 20%, while improving the finish
and allowing tighter tolerances. Steel emerges from the rolling process as semi-finished
products in the form of blooms, billets, or slabs, depending on the final dimensions. A
bloom is a very thick rectangular slab, a billet has a similar thickness but a narrower
width, and a slab is a thinner and wider product.
Blooms
Structural applications
Railings
Guard rails
Hand rails
Custom railings
Rolled bars
Machine building
Construction
Heavy manufacturing
Boilers
Bridges
Industrial vessels
Tanks
Ships
Car bodies
Household appliances
Office equipment
Beverage cans
Round/square rods
Construction frameworks
Braces
Shafts
Axles
Once steel leaves the rolling mill, downstream companies use different secondary
processing techniques to prevent corrosion and improve the properties of the metal.
The predominant technique to do this is heat treatment.
Heat treating
The purpose of heat treating steel is to manipulate its mechanical properties by
changing the distribution of carbon in the product and the internal microstructure. When
manipulating the mechanical properties of steel, an increase in ductility results in a
reduction of hardness and strength and vice versa.
Normalizing
Steel is heated to a temperature approximately 130°F above the upper critical
temperature. The temperature is held until the entire product is uniformly heated, after
which it is air-cooled. This is the most common form of heat treatment and gives steel
high strength and hardness.
Annealing
The temperature of steel is raised into the solid solution state for one hour before
cooling at a rate of 70°F per hour. A soft and ductile steel results with no internal
stresses.
Quenching
A similar process to normalizing, but cooling is accelerated by quenching the steel in
water, brine, or oil. The resulting product is very hard—up to four times harder than
normalized steel—but very brittle, making it susceptible to breaking and cracking. For
this reason, quenching to a predetermined temperature is normally followed by a
controlled cooling rate down to room temperature in a process called tempering or
stress relieving. By designing the temperature and cooling rate parameters during heat
treatment, the properties of steel can be precisely controlled.
Surface treating
Approximately one third of steel produced is treated with a surface coating to inhibit
corrosion, improve weldability, and paintability.
Electrolytic galvanizing
Another process for applying a zinc coat to steel products is through electrolytic
galvanizing. Zinc is deposited onto the surface of the steel by controlling the current in
an electrolyte solution. This technique allows for better control of the coating thickness.
It can also be used to apply differential coatings with different thicknesses on either side
of a product, or zinc alloy coatings to optimize the desired characteristics.
Sources for recycled steel include scrap from steel mills, secondary manufacturers, and steel
products at the end of their product life cycle.
Sources for recycled steel include scrap from steel mills, secondary manufacturers, and
steel products at the end of their product life cycle. There is often not enough recycled
steel to meet the manufacturing demand so there is almost always a combination of
virgin and recycled steel in the production of finished products.
Recycling steel is also economical as it brings down the cost of finished products. For
this reason, the steel industry has been actively involved in promoting and establishing
recycling networks to make it easy for end of life products to be recycled.
For more information on steel, or to request a quote for a custom project, please contact
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