STEEL, ITS TYPES AND

MANUFACTURING
PROCESSES

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 STEEL
Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon with carbon content
maximum up to 1.7%.
The carbon occurs in the form of iron carbide, because of
its ability to increase the hardness and strength of the
steel.
The other elements (impurities) are also added to improve
the properties of steel .Such as silicon, sulphur,
phosphorus and manganese are present to greater or
lesser amount to import certain desired properties to it.
Most of the steel produced now-a-days is plain carbon 2
steel.
 CLASSIFICATION OF STEEL
01. Types of steel according to carbon contents.
(i) Plain carbon steel
(ii)Alloy steel

(i) Plain carbon steel

Plain carbon steel is an alloy of iron and carbon.
It has good machinability and malleability.
It contains carbon from 0.06 to 1.5%

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 PLAIN CARBON STEELS CAN DIVIDED
INTO THE FOLLOWING TYPES:

1. Dead carbon steel — up to 0.15% carbon

2. Low carbon or mild steel — 0.15% to 0.45% carbon
3. Medium carbon steel — 0.45% to 0.8% carbon
4. High carbon steel — 0.8% to 1.5% c

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 DEAD CARBON STEEL
It possesses very low percentage of carbon varying from
0.05 to 0.15%.
It has a tensile strength of 390 N/mm2 and a hardness of
about 115 BHN.
This steel is used for making camshafts, sheets and strips
for fan blades, welded tubing, forgings, chains, stamping,
rivets, nails, pipes, automobile body etc.

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 LOW CARBON OR MILD STEEL
Low carbon steel is sometimes known as mild steel also.
It contains 0.20 to 0.30% C
which has tensile strength of 555 N/mm2 and hardness of
140 BHN
It can be easily forged and welded. It can absorb shocks.
It rusts easily.
Its melting point is about 1410°C.
It is used for making angle, channels, steel, rods, tubes,
valves, gears, crankshafts, connecting rods, railway axles,
small forgings and forged components etc. 6
 MEDIUM CARBON STEELS
Medium carbon steel contains carbon from 0.30 to 0.8%.
It is tough and more elastic in comparison to wrought
iron.
It can be easily forged, welded, elongated due to ductility
and beaten into sheets due to its good malleability.
Its melting point is 1400°C.

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 HIGH CARBON STEELS
High carbon steels (HCS) contain carbon from 0.8 to
1.5%. Because of their high hardness, these are suitable for
wear resistant parts.
Spring steel is also high carbon steel.
HCS containing 0.7 to 0.8% carbon possesses hardness
of 450-500 BHN.
It has application for making cold chisels, wheels for
railway service, automatic clutch discs, hacksaws etc.

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 (II)ALLOY STEEL

For improving the properties of ordinary steel, certain alloying

elements are added in it in sufficient amounts.
The most common alloying elements added to steel are chromium,
nickel, manganese, silicon, vanadium, molybdenum, tungsten,
phosphorus, copper, that the titanium, zirconium, cobalt,
columbium, and aluminum.
Each of these elements induces certain qualities in steels to which it
is added.
Some alloying elements lower and some raise the critical
temperature.
The compositional and structural changes produced by alloying
elements change and improve the physical, mechanical and
processing properties of steel. 9
EFFECT OF ALLOYING ELEMENTS IN
STEEL

The chief alloying elements used in steel are nickel,

chromium, molybdenum, cobalt, vanadium, manganese,
silicon and tungsten.
Each of these elements possesses certain qualities upon
the steel to which it is added.
These elements may be used separately or in combination
to produce the desired characteristic in steel.
Following are the effects of alloying elements on steel.
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1. Nickel. Steels contain 2 to 5% nickel and from 0.1 to 0.5%
carbon increase its strength and toughness.
An alloy containing 25% nickel possesses maximum toughness
and offers the greatest resistance to rusting, corrosion and burning
at high temperature.
2. Chromium. The most common chrome steels contain from 0.5
to 2% chromium and 0.1 to 1.5% carbon.
The chrome steel is used for balls and rollers bearings
3. Tungsten. It increases hardness, wear resistance, shocks
resistance and magnetic reluctance.
It increases ability to retain hardness and toughness at high
temperature.
The principal uses of tungsten steels are for cutting tools, dies,
valves, taps and permanent magnets.
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 4. VANADIUM.
It aids in obtaining a fine grain structure in tool steel.
The addition of a very small amount of vanadium (less
than 0.2%) produces a marked increase in tensile strength
and elastic limit in low and medium carbon steels without
a loss of ductility.
It improves tensile strength, elastic limit, ductility, fatigue
resistance, shock resistance and response to heat
treatment.

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 5. MOLYBDENUM.
A very small quantity (0.15 to 0.30%) of molybdenum is
generally used with chromium and manganese (0.5 to 0.8%) to
make molybdenum steel.
It increases hardness, wear resistance, thermal resistance.
It is used for automobile parts.
6. Cobalt.
When added to steel, it refines the graphite and pearlite and
acts as a grain refiner.
It improves hardness, toughness, tensile strength and thermal
resistance.
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7. Titanium. It acts as a good deoxidizer and promotes
grain growth. It prevents formation of austenite in high
chromium steels.
It is the strongest carbide former.
It is used to fix carbon in stainless steels and thus prevents
the precipitation of chromium carbide.
8. Aluminium. It is used as a deoxidizer.
If present in an amount of about 1 %, it helps promoting
nitriding.
9. Copper. It improves resistance to corrosion.
It increases strength.
More than 0.6 per cent copper for precipitation
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 10. SILICON.
Silicon steels containing from 1 to 2% silicon and 0.1 to
0.4% carbon and other alloying elements are used for
electrical machinery, valves in I.C. engines, springs and
corrosion resisting materials
It takes care of oxygen present in steel by forming SiO2
It improves magnetic permeability.
These steels have a high elastic limit as compared to
ordinary carbon steel.

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11. Manganese.
The manganese alloy steels containing over 1.5% manganese
with a carbon range of 0.40 to 0.55% are used extensively in
gears, axles, shafts and other parts where high strength combined
with fair ductility is required.
It improves the strength of the steel in both the hot rolled and
heat treated condition.
The principal use of manganese steel is in machinery parts
subjected to severe wear.
These steels are all cast and ground to finish.
12. Carbon. It increases tensile strength and hardness. It
decreases ductility and weld ability.
It affects the melting point.
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 STAINLESS STEEL
It has been defined as that steel which when correctly heat
treated and finished, resists oxidation and corrosive attack
from most corrosive media.
Steels having 15 to 20% Ni and about 0.1 % carbon possesses
great strength and toughness and extremely good resistance to
corrosion. Such steels are called stainless steels.
Another type of stainless steel containing 11 to 14%
chromium and about 0.35% carbon is used for cutlery,
surgical and dental instruments and other purposes
where hard edges are required.
A steel containing 18% chromium and 8% nickel is widely
used and is commonly referred to as 18/8 steel. 17
GENERAL PROPERTIES OF STAINLESS
STEELS
It possesses wide range of strength and hardness,
high ductility Formability High corrosion
resistance, Good creep resistance, good thermal
conductivity, good machinability, good weld
ability Cold workability
Excellent surface appearance and finish.

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CLASSIFICATION OF STAINLESS
STEEL

On basis of their structure, stainless steels are classified

as follow:
1. Martensitic stainless steels
2. Ferritic stainless steels
3. Austenitic stainless steels

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 MANUFACTURING OF STEEL
Following methods/process are used for the
production/manufacturing of steel.
01.Cementation process
The cementation process is an obsolete technique for
making steel by carburization of iron.
Unlike modern steelmaking, it increased the amount of 
carbon in the iron.
The process begins with wrought iron and charcoal.
The iron had "gained" a little over 1% in mass from the 
carbon in the charcoal, and had become heterogeneous bars
of blister steel. 20
 02.CRUCIBLE FURNACES

Steel is made by melting iron and other materials

in a crucible and pouring the molten metal into a
mould.
Metal is melted without direct contact with
burning fuel mixture
Sometimes called indirect fuel‑fired, furnaces
Container (crucible) is made of refractory material
or high‑temperature steel alloy 21
 03.BESSEMER PROCESS
The Bessemer process was the first inexpensive
industrial process for the mass-production of steel from molten
pig iron prior to the open hearth furnace.
The key principle is removal of impurities from the iron by
oxidation with air being blown through the molten iron.
The oxidation also raises the temperature of the iron mass and
keeps it hen the required steel has been formed, it is poured out
into ladles and then transferred into moulds while the lighter
slag is left behind.
The conversion process, called the "blow", is completed in
around twenty minute molten.
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BESSMER FURNACE

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 04.OPEN HEARTH PROCESS
The open hearth process is a batch process and a batch is called a
"heat".
Once it is ready or repaired, it is charged with light scrap, such as
sheet metal and waste metal.
The furnace is heated using burning gas.
Once it has melted, heavy scrap, such as building, construction or
steel milling scrap is added, together with pig iron from blast
furnaces.
Once all the steel has melted, slag forming agents, such as
limestone, are added.
The oxygen in iron oxide and other impurities decarburize the pig
iron by burning excess carbon away, forming steel. 24
 Open hearth furnaces
Open hearth furnaces are one of a number of
kinds of furnace where excess carbon and other
impurities are burnt out of pig iron to
produce steel.
Since steel is difficult to manufacture due to its
high melting point, normal fuels and furnaces
were insufficient and the open hearth furnace was
developed to overcome this difficulty.
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OPEN HEARTH FURNACES

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 05.DUPLEX PROCESS
A steel-making process that is carried out in two
successive steel-melting units (the process is sometimes
also used to smelt cast iron, beginning in a cupola furnace
and ending in an electric furnace).
The duplex process, which was first used in the second
half of the 19th century, makes possible more efficient
use of various units.
only the final refining and deoxidation of the steel are
carried out in the arc furnace.
The application of the duplex process is limited. 27
06. (L-D )LINZ-DONAWITZ PROCESS

Basic oxygen steelmaking (BOS), also known as Linz-Donawitz

steelmaking or the oxygen converter process.
Basic oxygen steelmaking is a primary steelmaking process for
converting the molten pig iron into steel by blowing oxygen
through a lance over the molten pig iron inside the converter.
The process in the LD converter is opposite to that in the blast
furnace. In the latter, carbon is added to remove the oxygen from
the ore.
In the LD converter, oxygen is added to remove the carbon from
the hot metal.

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L-D )LINZ-DONAWITZ PROCESS

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 07. ELECTRIC ARC PROCESS
In electric arc furnace steelmaking scrap + hot metal + directly
reduced iron is used to produce plain carbon steel.
Electric energy is the principle source of thermal energy.
Graphite electrodes are used to supply the current (given in
figure ).
The AC electric arc furnaces are very popular.
EAF generates a considerable noise.
Now a days EAF has occupied a unique position in the steel
industry: EAF can be switched over easily to produce plain
Carbon steel or alloy steel depending on the market
requirements.
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Fig: Electric arc furnace
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