Brief discussion of steel making process and different grades of steels By: Abdur Akanda The Pennsylvania State

University 3/24/2014

Steel Making Process

We use steels in our everyday life. The steel making process is a manufacturing process that combines iron (99 Weight Percent (wt%)) and carbon (1 Weight Percent (wt%)) to make every day use steels. There are many different grades of steels. This document will provide insight on the process of steel making and different grades of steels.

How Steel is Made

The steel making process begins with the two most important ingredients: iron and carbon. Iron ore are found in taconite rock, which is extracted from the earth. After taconite rocks are broken into pieces, iron ore is found within it. The carbon source is a called coke, which is carbonization of coal at very high temperature. There are two different ways to produce steels. One method uses the Basic Oxygen Furnace, and the other uses an Electric Arc Furnace.

Basic Oxygen Furnace

In the basic oxygen furnace, iron ore is added with coke and limestone to produce steels. Different temperatures range and elements are added to product different type of steels. Temperature of 15380C is initially used with iron and carbon are used to make one type of steel. Basic oxygen furnace use methods of coal burning to product heat require to melt iron and coke.

Electric Arc Furnace

Electric arc furnace is utilized in steel making when scrap metals are used. It uses electric arc to heats the metals to its melting point. There is very limited usage of Electric Arc Furnaces in steel making industries.

Figure 1: Electric Arc Furnace

Page 1 of 5

Different types of Steel

There are many different grades of steel available for everyday use. Examples of such steels are A36 low alloy steel for construction industries and stainless steel for home appliances. The following paragraphs introduce brief information on how temperature affects steel and different grades of steel.

Temperature Effects on Steel Processing

Temperatures and carbon concentrations amount play a fundamental role in steel making process. Different temperature range yield different types of steel. The images shown below demonstrate how temperature and carbon affect steels. Carbon is usually coke that used in steel making process mentioned above. Upon heating iron from room temperature to melting point, iron exhibits three phase transformations. Such phase transformations are call Delta Ferrite, Austenite, and Ferrite. There are many sections in Figure 2, however this document is only going to provide a brief overview of three sections. Delta Ferrite

Austenite

Ferrite
Figure 2: Body Centered Cubic Structure Figure 3: Iron-Carbon System

Delta Ferrite phase is Body Centered Cubic (bcc) Structure with temperature ranging from 13940C- 15380C. At Delta Ferrite phase only iron is present with nominal amount of carbon. This phase temperature is only use to get out any impurity present in iron. Austenite phase is a Face Center Cubic (FCC) with temperature ranging from 9120C - 13940C. Since Austenite is FCC structure making is non-magnetic steel. Also it is only stable at temperatures above 7270C with maximum solubility of 2.14 wt% carbon at 11470C. Ferrite phase is also Body Centered Cubic Structure with temperature ranging from 250C to 9120C. Since Ferrite is bcc structure making it magnetic steel. However, ferrite steels are only magnetic when it is process temperatures below 7680C. A Page 2 of 5
Figure 4: Face Centered Cubic

simple magnetic test can be used to determine what kind of steel it is and what temperatures it was processed at.

Different Grades of Steel

There are very different grades of steel available to be used in everyday applications. Steels are divided in two major categories such as Low Alloy and High Alloy steels. Each major category has sub-categories within it. Figure 5 below show such categories about steels. Example of different grades of steel will be 1010, 1020, 1080, A36, 1040, and many others. 1010 steel tells a potential buyers that the steel contain 0.10 wt% of carbon. Based on the carbon concentration, buyers will be able to predict mechanical properties of that specific steel. Low Alloy Steels This category of steel has a high amount of iron weight percent with low amount of carbon weight percent with nominal amount of Nickel, Manganese, Chromium, Molybdenum, and few other elements. Different elements are added for strength, Figure 5: Steels Categories corrosion resistance and many other mechanical properties. Mechanical properties of steels depend on carbon and other elements concentration. There are three sub-categories within Low Alloy Steel such as Low, Medium, and High Carbon. Low carbon steel content less than 0.25 wt% of carbon concentration. Making it soft and weak with good ductility and toughness as mechanical properties. The strength of the steel is obtain by cold working (hitting and biting steel). Also these types of steel are easily machined and welded, and they are the least expensive types of steels available to purchase. These grades of steels are used in an application such as: automobile panels, nails, wire, pipe, bridges and building, and low temperature pressure vessels. Medium carbon steel is content carbon concentrations between 0.25 and 0.06 wt%. The strength of the steel is obtained by heat treating. Nickel, Chromium, and Molybdenum are added for better mechanical properties. This type of steel is use in applications where high strength, wear resistance, and toughness is required. Examples of Medium carbon steel application are springs, hand tools, bolts, bushings, shaft, pistons, gears, and aircraft tubing. High carbon steel content carbon concentrations between 0.60 and 1.4 wt% carbon. These types of steels are hardest, strongest, and least ductile out of three kinds of low alloy steels. High carbon steel is wear resistant with the capability of holding a sharp edge. Example of such application are: hammers, Chisels, Knives, and Hacksaw blades.

Page 3 of 5

High Alloy Steel High alloy steel have large amount of Nickel, Manganese, Chromium, Molybdenum, and few others element concentration present with iron and carbon to make the steel. Examples of High alloy steel are stainless steels. Stainless Steels Stainless steels are used in a corrosion environment. Adding of Nickel and Molybdenum with 11 wt% to 30wt% of Chromium makes it high resistance to corrosion. In addition to resistance to corrosion, stainless steels are low maintenance, low cost, and aesthetic. Applications of stainless steels include cookware, surgical instruments, jewelry, Aerospace and Automotive industries, and many others.

Conclusion
It talked about how steel are manufactured through different processes. In addition, different temperature ranges, carbon concentrations, and the addition of other elements present produce different grades of steel.

Page 4 of 5

Referances
Callister, William, and David Rethwisch. Materials Science and Engineering an Introduction. Eighth. United States of America: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2010. Print. Face Centered Cubic. N.d. Photograph. University of PennsylvaniaWeb. 22 Mar 2014. <www.seas.upenn.edu>. Shim, Dan. Body Centered cubic. N.d. Photograph. Arizona State UniversityWeb. 21 Mar 2014. <www.public.asu.edu >. "Making Steel." Steel Works. American Iron and Steel Institute. Web. 22 Mar 2014. <http://www.steel.org/en/Making Steel.asp&xgt;.

Page 5 of 5