What Is Steel?

Introduction

Steel is one of the important metals which used in a variety of industries all over the world, including the transportation, heavy engineering, construction and energy. It is a unique material that has special properties which make it different than the other materials. It is considered the most recycled material on the earth. Moreover, many countries considered the steel as a main source of the economic growth. In this report several points will be discussed, including the steels’ types, uses, properties, main producers and the sustainability.

Steel

What is steel

The steel is a large family of metals. It is one of the world's most vital materials which used in many things. All of steel types are alloyed in which iron is mixed with carbon and other elements. It consists 0.02% of carbon. Basically, steel is a material that endures eutectic reaction. Sometimes there are some elements that modify the characteristic of steel, including: manganese, nickel, chromium, molybdenum, boron, titanium, vanadium, tungsten, cobalt and niobium. Also, there are additional elements which are important such as oxygen and nitrogen.

History of steel

The ancient people were using the iron as early as 4000 b.c. e to make various weapons, tools, and other things. They actually were taking the iron for the nickel. These irons were containing a higher percentage of nickel than native iron ores in the earth. By 1200b.c.e. iron iron was being mixed with burning wood or charcoal and turned into hot masses from which iron metal could be "wrought" by repeated hammering. After all, the iron is picked up from the charcoal and turning it into the hard material that has come to be known as steel. During the first millennium B.C.E., many steel products were produced in India. It was strong, and have a wavy patterned surface, it was especially used for making swords. The steel was also sought after by Europeans, who called it "wootz" , by the Moors and by Arabs who used it in making their swords especially the Damascus swords.

Making steel

Throughout the years different countries have exceeded expectations in making steel. during the eighteenth century a moderately little amount of steel was made, however Sweden was the main producer. In the nineteenth century Great Britain became prevalent. In the twentieth century the United States was the largest steel producer on the earth until around 1970, when it was surpassed by the Soviet Union. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, China led the world in steel production. There are three essential establishments in a coordinated steel plant are:

The blast furnace:

Where the iron ores are converted into iron metal. Coke, limestone and iron are loaded into the top of the blast furnace. The coke is converted to carbon, the molten iron falls to the bottom of the furnace and the limestone form a molten slag with the silicate impurities. After that, the iron is poured into molds.

The steel furnaces:

In the steel furnace, the sulfur, phosphorus and impurities are burned away in the furnace. During the first half of the twentieth century the open hearth furnace become the main type of steel furnace.

The rolling mills:

The final step in this process is shaping. The liquid steel can be thrown into ingots or other shape. After that, they send it to the rolling mills. There are two kinds of rolling mills, cold and hot. In this step many kinds of steel slabs are rolled into strips, bars or other types of products.

Types of steel

There are four different types of steel, each one of them has special properties and uses:

Carbon Steel :

This is the most widely used kind of steel. Its carbon content is below 2 percent and is usually less than 1 percent. It also contains a little manganese. This type contains 3 categories Low carbon steel (sometimes known as mild steel); Medium carbon steel; and High carbon steel.

Stainless Steel:

Stainless steel has been alloyed to greatly increase the corrosion resistance over that of carbon/alloy steel. Common alloying ingredients include chromium (usually at least 11%), nickel, or molybdenum. Alloy content often is on the order of 15-30%.

Alloy Steel :

A steel to which modest amounts of one or more alloying elements (other than carbon) such as Ni, Cr, or Mn have been added. Alloy steels are workhorses of industry because of their economical cost,ease of processing,wide availability , and good properties. Alloy steels are generally more reacting to heat and mechanical treating than carbon steels. Heat Treated Alloy Steel is available in both Annealed and Normalized.

Tool Steel:

This is very hard steel made by tempering (heating to a very high temperature and then quickly cooling). Particular tools applications are dies (stamping or expulsion), cutting, moldmaking, or affect applications like mallets (individual or industrial).

Steel Properties

Steel has many properties that make it a useful and essential building and production material, some of its’ properties are :

Durability : It has a very long design life and high quality remains .

Recycability : All steel can be recycled, steel is recycled without quality losses, and all steel has recycled content .

Reusability