IRON AND STEEL

MAKING
4TH SEM
 Course outlines
Raw materials of iron and steel making
Processing of raw materials
Charge calculation for iron and steel making
Extraction and refining tools of iron making processes.
Resent trends in blast furnace and DR technology
Conventional and advance steel making processes
Environmental friendly iron and steel making technologies
Layout of iron and steel making plants
Management of bulk production of iron and steelmaking
Recent trends in CCM technologies.
Physico-chemical principles in of iron and steel making
Concept of standards and specifications of ferrous alloy systems in
iron and steel
Books: An Introduction To modern Iron Making RH and VR Tup.
Books: An Introduction To modern steel Making RH and VR Tup.
Making Shaping and Treating of Steel By HE Mcgannon
Physical chemistry of Iron and Steel Manufacture By C. Bodsworth
 Raw materials in steelmaking

Key raw materials needed in steelmaking include

1. iron ore,
2. coal,
3. limestone and
4. recycled steel.

The two main steel production routes and their related inputs are:
1- The integrated steelmaking route, based on the blast furnace
(BF) and basic oxygen furnace (BOF), uses raw materials
including iron ore, coal, limestone and recycled steel. On
average, this route uses 1,400 kg of iron ore, 770 kg of coal,
150 kg of limestone, and 120 kg of recycled steel to produce a
tonne of crude steel.
1- The integrated steelmaking
route, based on the blast
furnace
(BF) and basic oxygen furnace
(BOF), uses raw materials
including iron ore, coal,
limestone and recycled steel.
On average, this route uses
1,400 kg of iron ore, 770 kg of
coal,
150 kg of limestone, and 120
kg of recycled steel to
produce a
tonne of crude steel.
2-The electric arc
furnace (EAF) route,
based on the EAF,
uses
primarily recycled
steels and/or direct
reduced iron (DRI)
and electricity. On
average, the recycled
steel-EAF route uses
880 kg of recycled
steel, 150 kg of coal
and 43 kg of
limestone
to produce a tonne
of crude steel.
1. iron ore,
2. coal,
3. limestone and
4. recycled steel.
 Iron ore
Steel is an alloy consisting mostly of iron and less than 2%
carbon.
Iron ore is, therefore, essential for the production of steel,
which in turn is essential in maintaining a strong industrial
base.
98% of mined iron ore is used to make steel. Iron is one of the
most abundant metallic elements.
Its oxides, or ores, compose about 5% of the earths crust.
Average iron content for ores is 60% to 65%,
after taking into account other naturally-occurring impurities.
Iron ore is mined in about 50 countries. The majority of iron
ore is mined in Brazil, Australia, China, India, the US and
Russia. Australia and Brazil together dominate the worlds
iron ore exports, each having about one-third of total exports.
Worldwide iron ore resources are estimated to
exceed 800 billion tones of crude ore,
containing more than 230 billion tones of iron.
Current reserves (extractable using available
technology) of iron ore are estimated at 180
billion tones. If potential reserves are
included, this increases to 370 billion tones.
 Iron ores
Iron ores are rocks and minerals from
which metallic iron can be economically
extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron
oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright
yellow, deep purple, to rusty red. The iron itself is
usually found in the form of
magnetite (Fe3O4),
hematite (Fe2O3),
goethite(FeO(OH)),
limonite (FeO(OH).n(H2O)) or
siderite (FeCO3).
 Iron ore beneficiation preparation
Very low grade Iron ore cannot be used in
metallurgical plants and needs to be upgraded
to increase the iron content and reduce the
gangue content. A process adopted to
upgrade ore is called Beneficiation. Iron ore is
upgraded to a higher iron content through
concentration. Iron ore is being beneficiated
all round the world to meet the quality
requirement of Iron and Steel industries.
 However, each source of Iron ore has its own
irregular mineralogical characteristics and
requires the specific beneficiation and
metallurgical treatment to get the best
product out of it. The choice of the
beneficiation treatment depends on the
nature of the gangue present and its
association with the ore structure. Several
techniques such as washing, jigging, magnetic
separation, advanced gravity separation and
flotation are being used to enhance the
quality of the Iron ore.
 Due to the high density of hematite relative to
silicates, Ore separating line usually involves a
combination of crushing and milling as well as
heavy liquid separation. This is achieved by
passing the finely crushed ore over a bath of
solution containing bentonite or other agent
which increases the density of the solution.
When the density of the solution is properly
calibrated, the hematite will sink and the
silicate mineral waste will float and can be
removed.
 Extraction and refining tools of iron making processes.
Iron is produced chiefly from oxide ores. For
many years rich hematite ores were produced
by open-pit mining. However, these ores have
been largely depleted, and iron is now
produced from low-grade ores that are
treated to improve their quality; this process
is called beneficiation. Iron ores are refined in
the blast furnace. The product of the blast
furnace is called pig iron and contains about
4% carbon and small amounts of manganese,
silicon, phosphorus, and sulfur.
 About 95% of this iron is processed further to
make steel, often by the open-hearth process
or the Bessemer process, but more recently in
various countries by the basic oxygen
process or by an electric arc furnace. The
balance is cast in sand molds into blocks called
pigs. It is further processed in iron foundries.
 Cast Iron
Cast iron is made when pig iron is remelted in small
cupola furnaces (similar to the blast furnace in design
and operation) and poured into molds to make
castings. It usually contains 2% to 6% carbon. Scrap
iron or steel is often added to vary the composition.
Cast iron is used extensively to make machine parts,
engine cylinder blocks, stoves, pipes, steam radiators,
and many other products. Gray cast iron, or gray iron,
is produced when the iron in the mold is cooled slowly.
Part of the carbon separates out in plates in the form
of graphite but remains physically mixed in the iron.
Gray iron is brittle but soft and easily machined. White
cast iron, or white iron, which is harder and more
brittle, is made by cooling the molten iron rapidly.
 The carbon remains distributed throughout
the iron as cementite (iron carbide, Fe3C). A
malleable cast iron can be made by annealing
white iron castings in a special furnace. Some
of the carbon separates from the cementite; it
is much more finely divided than in gray iron.
A ductile iron may be prepared by adding
magnesium to the molten pig iron; when the
iron is cast the carbon forms tiny spherical
nodules around the magnesium. Ductile iron is
strong, shock resistant, and easily machined.
 Wrought Iron
Wrought iron is commercially purified iron. Pig
iron is refined in a Bessemer converter and then
poured into molten iron silicate slag. The
resulting semisolid mass is passed between
rollers that squeeze out most of the slag. The
wrought iron has a fibrous structure with threads
of slag running through it; it is tough, malleable,
ductile, corrosion resistant, and melts only at high
temperatures. It is used to make rivets, bolts,
pipes, chains, and anchors, and is also used for
ornamental ironwork.
 Wrought iron is an iron alloy with a very
low carbon (0.1 to 0.25) content in contrast
to cast iron, and has fibrous inclusions, known
as slag up to 2% by weight. It is a semi-fused
mass of iron with slag inclusions which gives it
a "grain" resembling wood, that is visible
when it is etched or bent to the point of
failure. Wrought iron is tough, malleable,
ductile and easily welded.
 Future Trends of Blast Furnace Ironmaking

Iron has been made in blast furnaces for more than

500 years. During that time, the blast furnaces have
evolved into highly efficient reactors. At present, the
blast furnace is still the dominant pig iron production
unit, with several hundred units in operation
worldwide. The blast furnace has a long history, and
modern blast furnaces are highly effective and energy
efficient reactors.
However, blast furnaces require coke, and coke plants
which are expensive and have many environmental
problems associated with their operation. Therefore,
other techniques are now available which present a
challenge to the blast furnace route for pig iron
production, such as direct reduction and smelting
reduction processes.
 The injection of carbon-bearing reductants at the
tuyere level has given new movement to blast
furnace operational practice to reduce the coke
consumption significantly. Not only pulverized
coal can be injected, gaseous reductants such as
natural gas and waste plastics and biomass are
used as reductants injected through tuyeres.
Furthermore, oxygen-enriched air can be used to
increase the efficiency and maintain relatively
high temperature of the shaft. However, coke can
never be fully replaced in a blast furnace because
of its burden supporting function. The minimum
blast furnace coke rate is approximately 200 kg/t
pig iron.
 The following aspects put
pressure on the blast furnace
production route of steelmaking:
Environmental aspects of sinter plants;
Environmental and economical aspects of the
coke oven plant;
Relative inflexibility and scale of the pig iron
production;
Increasing competition by the scrap- or DRI-
based EAF steelmaking route.
 Direct reduction
It is an alternative route of iron making, has been
developed to overcome some of these difficulties of
conventional blast furnaces. DRI is successfully
manufactured in various parts of the world through
either natural gas or coal-based technology. Iron ore is
reduced in solid state at 800 to 1,050 C either by
reducing gas (H2+CO) or coal. The specific investment
and operating costs of direct reduction plants are low
compared to integrated steel plants and are more
suitable for many developing countries where supplies
of coking coal are limited.
The direct reduction process is energy efficient, but is
most competitive with the blast furnace when it can be
integrated with electric arc furnaces to take advantage
of the latent heat produced by the DRI product.
Factors that help make DRI economical:
Direct-reduced iron has about the same iron content as pig
iron, typically 9094% total iron (depending on the quality
of the raw ore) as opposed to about 93% for molten pig
iron, so it is an excellent feedstock for the electric
furnaces used by mini mills, allowing them to use lower
grades of scrap for the rest of the charge or to produce
higher grades of steel.
Hot-briquetted iron (HBI) is a compacted form of DRI
designed for ease of shipping, handling, and storage.
Hot Direct Reduced Iron (HDRI) is iron not cooled before
discharge from the reduction furnace, that is immediately
transported to a waiting electric arc furnace and charged,
thereby saving energy.
The direct reduction process uses pelletized iron ore or
natural "lump" ore. One exception is the fluidized bed
process which requires sized iron ore particles. Few ores
are suitable for direct reduction.
 The direct reduction process can use natural gas
contaminated with inert gases, avoiding the need
to remove these gases for other use. However,
any inert gas contamination of the reducing gas
lowers the effect (quality) of that gas stream and
the thermal efficiency of the process.
Supplies of powdered ore and raw natural gas are
both available in areas such as
Northern Australia, avoiding transport costs for
the gas. In most cases the DRI plant is located
near natural gas source as it is more cost effective
to ship the ore rather than the gas.
this method produces 97% pure iron.
 NOTE: Directly reduced iron is highly at risk to oxidation
and rusting if left unprotected, and is normally quickly
processed further to steel. The bulk iron can also catch fire
since it is pyrophoric.(bursting into flames spontaneously
when exposed to air)
The pyrophoric Iron this article refers to is a form of
very finely powdered Iron metal particles which can
spontaneously ignite and burn when coming into contact
with air. Iron naturally reacts with the Oxygen gas in the
atmosphere to form Iron Oxide, otherwise known as rust.
This natural oxidation reaction is very exothermic; however
it is usually very slow under normal conditions. Increasing
the exposed surface area of the Iron will result in the
reaction proceeding much more quickly and giving off more
heat in a shorter amount of time. By making the Iron
particles into a very fine powder, the surface area available
to react with the Oxygen in the air will be high enough to
cause the particles to spontaneously begin to burn; at this
point the Iron particles are pyrophoric.
 Basic oxygen steelmaking (BOS, BOP, BOF,
and OSM), also known as Linz-Donawitz-
Verfahren steelmaking or the oxygen converter
process is a method of primary steelmaking in
which carbon-rich molten pig iron is made
into steel. Blowing oxygen through molten pig
iron lowers the carbon content of the alloy and
changes it into low-carbon steel. The process is
known as basic due to the type of refractories
calcium oxide and magnesium oxidethat line
the vessel to withstand the high temperature of
the molten metal.
Electric Arc Steel Making
 electric arc furnace (EAF
This is a furnace that heats charged material by means
of an electric arc.
Arc furnaces range in size from small units of
approximately one ton capacity (used in foundries for
producing cast iron products) up to about 400 ton units
used for secondary steelmaking. Arc furnaces used in
research laboratories and by dentists may have a
capacity of only a few dozen grams. Industrial electric
arc furnace temperatures can be up to 1,800 C
(3,272 F), while laboratory units can exceed 3,000 C
(5,432 F). Arc furnaces differ from induction
furnaces in that the charge material is directly exposed
to an electric arc, and the current in the furnace
terminals passes through the charged material.
 Construction

A schematic cross-section through an EAF. Three electrodes (yellow),

molten bath (gold), tapping spout at left, refractory brick movable roof,
brick shell, and a refractory-lined bowl-shaped hearth.
An electric arc furnace used for steelmaking consists of a refractory-lined
vessel, usually water-cooled in larger sizes, covered with a retractable roof,
and through which one or more graphite electrodes enter the
furnace.[4] The furnace is primarily split into three sections:
the shell, which consists of the sidewalls and lower steel "bowl";
the hearth, which consists of the refractory that lines the lower bowl;
the roof, which may be refractory-lined or water-cooled, and can be
shaped as a section of a sphere, or as a frustum (conical section). The roof
also supports the refractory delta in its centre, through which one or
more graphite electrodes enter.
 Environmental friendly iron and steel making
technologies
Corex process of iron and steel making is considered as
Environment-friendly process
The Corex Process is a smelting reduction process and is
more environmentally friendly alternative to the blast
furnace. Presently, the majority of steel production is
through the blast furnace which has to rely on ever
decreasing amounts of coking coal (It is a fuel with few
impurities and a high carbon content, usually made from
coal. It is the solid carbonaceous material derived
from destructive distillation of low-ash, low-
sulfur bituminous coal. Cokes made from coal are grey,
hard, and porous. While coke can be formed naturally, the
commonly used form is man-made. The form known
as petroleum coke, or pet coke, is derived from oil refinery
or other cracking processes)
 That is coal which has been cooked in order to remove
impurities so that it is superior to coal. In addition, the
Blast furnace requires a sinter plant too in order to
prepare the iron ore for reduction. Unlike the Blast
Furnace, smelting reduction processes are typical
smaller and use coal and oxygen directly to reduce iron
ore into a usable product. Smelting reduction
processes come in two basic varieties, two stage or
single stage. In a single stage system the iron ore is
both reduced and melted in the same container.
Meanwhile in a two stage process, like Corex, the ore is
reduced in one shaft and melted and purified in
another. Plants using the Corex process have been put
use in areas such as South Africa, India, and China.
 the Corex process consists of two main parts
a Reduction Shaft and Melter- Gasifier The main
reagents for the Corex process are iron
ore, noncoking coal, and oxygen. Unlike the Blast
furnace the Corex process does not use a hot
blast of nitrogen, thereby greatly reducing NOx
gas emissions, but instead uses oxygen. In
addition, the Corex process can use iron oxides
containing up to 80% lump ore and uses non
coking coal directly as a reducing agent.
COREX PROCESS
 In the Reduction shaft the iron ore, along
with limestone and dolomite additives, is
added and then reduced by reduction gas into
95% direct reduced iron, DRI. The DRI is then
redirected into the melter-gasifier. The Melter
gasifier has three main sections, the gaseous
free board zone, the Char bed, and the hearth
zone, and it has an effect on several stages in
the process. First it serves to create the
reduction gas by gasifying the coal with
oxygen and then cooling it.
 After being reduced, the DRI is redirected to
the char bed where the iron and slag are
melted and then directed to the hearth
zone. The heat inside the metal gasifier keeps
the amount of phenols (carbolic acid) small,
keeping them out of the atmosphere.
Meanwhile, carbon monoxide and
hydrogen gas from the original gasification of
the coal exit the gasifier while other
byproducts are captured in the metallic slag.
 The rest of the hot gas is then cooled and sent
into the reduction shaft resulting in the Corex
export gas which is used to control pressure in
the plant. Many of the gases resulting from
this process can then be recycled or used to
produce electricity. Dust particles also appear
in these gases and the Melter gasifier recycles
them with four dust burners.
 Since coking and sintering plants are not required
for the Corex process, substantial cost savings of
up to 20% can be achieved in the production of
hot metal. Regarding environmental concerns,
Corex plant emissions contain only insignificant
amounts of NOx, SO2, dust, phenols, sulfides and,
ammonium. Emission values are already far
below the maximum values allowed by future
European standards. Furthermore, waste-water
emissions from the Corex process are far lower
than those in the conventional blast-furnace
route.
 Main benefits of the Corex
process
Far lower investment costs and operating
costs vis--vis blast furnace
Outstanding environmental compatibility
Highest operational flexibility, i.e., production
output
Use of Corex export gas for many applications
environmentally friendly ironmaking
In the Corex Process, non-coking coal is
primarily used as the energy source and ore
reduc-tant for the production of liquid hot
metal, substituting expensive coking coal.
Operating costs and the environmental impact
are therefore far lower compared to the
conventional coke-oven, sinter-plant and
blast-furnace production route.
 Process Economy

Since coking and sintering plants are not

required for the Corex process, substantial
cost savings are achieved in the production of
hot metal. The extent of such savings
depends, of course, on local conditions, but
can be up to 20% as has been shown under
actual operating conditions.
 Continuous Casting Process
In the continuous casting process, pictured
below, molten steel flows from a ladle,
through a tundish into the mold. It should be
protected from exposure to air by a slag cover
over each vessel and by ceramic nozzles
between vessels. Once in the mold, the
molten steel freezes against the water-cooled
copper mold walls to form a solid shell. This
shell contains the liquid as the shell is
withdrawn continuously from the bottom of
the mold.
 Continuous casting transforms molten metal
into solid on a continuous basis and includes a
variety of important commercial processes.
These processes are the most efficient way to
solidify large volumes of metal into simple
shapes for subsequent processing. Most basic
metals are mass-produced using a continuous
casting process, including over 500 million
tons of steel, 20 million tons of aluminum, and
1 million tons of copper, nickel, and other
metals in the world each year.
 Continuous casting is distinguished from other
solidification processes by its steady state
nature, relative to an outside observer in a
laboratory frame of reference. The molten
metal solidifies against the mold walls while it
is simultaneously withdrawn from the bottom
of the mold at a rate which maintains the solid
/ liquid interface at a constant position with
time. The process works best when all of its
aspects operate in this steady-state manner.
 Relative to other casting processes,
continuous casting generally has a higher
capital cost, but lower operating cost. It is the
most cost- and energy- efficient method to
mass-produce semi-finished metal products
with consistent quality in a variety of sizes and
shapes. Cross-sections can be rectangular, for
subsequent rolling into plate or sheet, square
or circular for long products, and even dog-
bone shapes, for rolling into I or H beams.
 Many different types of continuous casting
processes exist. Vertical machines are used to
cast aluminum and a few other metals for
special applications. Curved machines are
used for the majority of steel casting and
require bending and / or unbending of the
solidifying strand. Horizontal casting features a
shorter building and is used occasionally for
both nonferrous alloys and steel. Finally, thin
strip casting is being pioneered for steel and
other metals in low-production markets in
order to minimize the amount of rolling
required.
 Steel Continuous Casting
Continuous casting is a relatively new process in
historical terms. Although the continuous strip casting
process was conceived by Bessemer in 1858, the
continuous casting of steel did not gain widespread use
until the 1960s. Earlier attempts suffered from
technical difficulties such as breakouts, where the
solidifying steel shell sticks to the mold, tears, and
allows molten steel to pour out over the bottom of the
machine. Many other developments and innovations
have transformed the continuous casting process into
the sophisticated process currently used to produce
over 90% of steel in the world today, including plain
carbon, alloy and stainless steel grades.
 In the continuous casting process for steel molten steel
flows from a ladle, through a tundish into the mold.
The tundish holds enough metal to provide a
continuous flow to the mold, even during an exchange
of ladles, which are supplied periodically from the
steelmaking process. The tundish can also serve as a
refining vessel to float out detrimental inclusions into
the slag layer. If solid inclusion particles are allowed to
remain in the product, then surface defects such as
slivers may form during subsequent rolling
operations, or they may cause local internal stress
concentration, which lowers the fatigue life. To
produce higher quality product, the liquid steel must
be protected from exposure to air by a slag cover over
the liquid surface in each vessel and by using ceramic
nozzles between vessels. If not, then oxygen in the air
will react to form detrimental oxide inclusions in the
steel.
 Once in the mold, the molten steel freezes against
the water-cooled walls of a bottomless copper mold
to form a solid shell. The mold is oscillated vertically
in order to discourage sticking of the shell to the
mold walls. Drive rolls lower in the machine
continuously withdraw the shell from the mold at a
rate or casting speed that matches the flow of
incoming metal, so the process ideally runs in steady
state. The liquid flow rate is controlled by restricting
the opening in the nozzle according to the signal fed
back from a level sensor in the mold.
 the curved upper
The most critical part of the
surface of a still
process is the initial solidification at
the meniscus, found at the junction liquid in a tube
where the top of the shell meets
the mold, and the liquid surface.
This is where the surface of the
final product is created, and defects
such as surface cracks can form, if
problems such as level fluctuations
occur. To avoid this, oil or mold slag
is added to the steel meniscus,
which flows into the gap between
the mold and shell. In addition to
lubricating the contact, a mold slag
layer protects the steel from air,
provides thermal insulation, and
absorbs inclusions.
 Below mold exit, the thin solidified shell (6-20
mm thick) acts as a container to support the
remaining liquid, which makes up the interior of
the strand. Water or air mist sprays cool the
surface of the strand between the support rolls.
The spray flow rates are adjusted to control the
strand surface temperature with minimal
reheating until the molten core is solid. After the
center is completely solid (at the metallurgical
length of the caster, which is 10 - 40m) the
strand is cut with oxyacetylene torches into slabs
or billets of any desired length.
 Different continuous casting processes exist to produce
cross sections of different shapes and sizes. Heavy,
four-piece plate molds with rigid backing plates are
used to cast large,
Rectangular slabs, (50-250 mm thick and 0.52.2 m
wide), which are rolled into plate or sheet.
Similar molds are used for casting relatively square
blooms, which range up to 400 x 600 mm in cross
section.
Single-piece tube molds are used to cast small, square
billets (100 - 200 mm thick) which are rolled into long
products, such as bars, angles, rails, nails, and axles.
The new strip casting process is being developed using
large rotating rolls as the mold walls to solidify 1-3mm
thick steel sheet.
 When casting large cross sections, such as slabs, a
series of rolls must support the soft steel shell
between mold exit and the metallurgical length,
in order to minimize bulging due to the internal
liquid pressure. Extra rolls are needed to force
the strand to unbend through the transition
from the curved to the straight portion of the
path shown in. If the roll support and alignment
are not sufficient, internal cracks and segregation
may result. These defects will persist in the final
product, even after many rolling and other
operations, so it is important to control the
casting process.
The process is started by plugging the bottom of
the mold with a dummy bar. After enough
metal has solidified like a conventional casting
onto its head, the dummy bar is then slowly
withdrawn down through the continuous casting
machine and steady state conditions evolve. The
process then operates continuously for a period
of one hour to several weeks, when the molten
steel supply is stopped and the process must be
restarted. The maximum casting speed of 1-8
m/min is governed by the allowable length of the
liquid core, and to avoid quality problems, which
are generally worse at higher speeds.
 After the steel leaves the caster, it is reheated
to a uniform temperature and rolled into
sheet, bars, rails, and other shapes. Modern
steel plants position the rolling operations
close to the caster to save on reheating
energy.
Continuous casting.
1: Ladle. 2: Stopper.
3: Tundish. 4: Shroud.
5: Mold. 6: Roll support.
7: Turning zone. 8: Shroud.
9: Bath level. 10: Meniscus.
11: Withdrawal unit.
12: Slab.

A: Liquid metal. B: Solidified

metal. C: Slag. D: Water-
cooled copper plates.
E: Refractory material.
 As the global economic recovery picked-up in 2010, the
steel industry saw a reversal of fortunes as well.
Crude steel production rose to 1.4 billion metric tons in
2010, from 1.2 billion in 2009, according to a report
by The World Steel Association.
With the emerging world expected to account for 72%
of global steel demand, the steel industry has shifted
focus too. For a broader picture we've looked at the
ten largest steel producing countries in the world and
combined it with data on how much each country
consumes and exports as well.
While China still maintains a huge lead, Turkey's crude
steel output increased by 21.3% to 16.4 million in the
first half of 2011. India is expected to be the world's
second largest producer of steel by 2013.
Note: Data is taken from 65 reporting countries.
 The 10 Biggest Steel Producing Countries
#10 Turkey
Turkish Steel
Crude steel production: 29.1 million metric tons
Total exports: 17.4 million metric tons
Steel use: 23.6 million metric tons of finished steel products
Note: Steel production and use data are for 2010. Steel export data is for
2009.
Source: World Steel Association
#9 Brazil
Gerdau\
Crude steel production: 32.9 million metric tons
Total exports: 8.6 million metric tons
Steel use: 26.6 million metric tons of finished steel products
Note: Steel production and use data are for 2010. Steel export data is for
2009.
Source: World Steel Association
 #8 Ukraine
Crude steel production: 33.4 million metric tons
Total exports: 24 million metric tons
Steel use: 5.5 million metric tons of finished steel products
Note: Steel production and use data are for 2010. Steel export data
is for 2009.
Source: World Steel Association

#7 Germany
Crude steel production: 43.8 million
Total exports: 20.8 million metric tons
Steel use: 36.3 million metric tons of finished steel products
Note: Steel production and use data are for 2010. Steel export data
is for 2009.
Source: World Steel Association
 #6 South Korea
Wikimedia Commons
Crude steel production: 58.4 million metric tons
Total exports: 20.2 million metric tons
Steel use: 52.4 million metric tons of finished steel products
Note: Steel production and use data are for 2010. Steel export
data is for 2009.
Source: World Steel Association
#5 Russia
Crude steel production: 66.9 million tons
Total exports: 27.6 million metric tons
Steel use: 35.7 million metric tons of finished steel products
Note: Steel production and use data are for 2010. Steel export
data is for 2009.
Source: World Steel Association
 #4 India
Hindu devotees use steel plates to make prayer offerings
Crude steel production: 68.3 million tons
Total exports: 5.6 million metric tons
Steel use: 60.6 million metric tons of finished steel products
Note: Steel production and use data are for 2010. Steel export data
is for 2009.
Source: World Steel Association
#3 United States
United States Steel Corp.
Crude steel production: 80.5 million tons
Total exports: 9.2 million metric tons
Steel use: 80.1 million metric tons of finished steel products
Note: Steel production and use data are for 2010. Steel export data
is for 2009.
Source: World Steel Association
 #2 Japan
Crude steel production: 109.6 million tons
Total exports: 33.3 million metric tons
Steel use: 63.8 million metric tons of finished steel
products
Note: Steel production and use data are for 2010. Steel
export data is for 2009.
Source: World Steel Association
#1 China
Crude steel production: 626.7 million metric tons
Total exports: 24 million metric tons
Steel use: 576 million metric tons of finished steel products
Note: Steel production and use data are for 2010. Steel
export data is for 2009.
Source: World Steel Association
Concept of standards and specifications
of ferrous alloy systems in iron and steel
The Unified Numbering System for Metals and
Alloys (UNS) provides means of correlating
many internationally used metal and alloy
numbering systems currently administered by
Societies,
Trade associations, and those
Individual users and
producers of metals and alloys.
 This system avoids the confusion caused by
the use of more than one identification
number for the same metal or alloy,
The UNS establishes 9 series of designations
for ferrous metals and alloys. Each UNS
designation consists of a single-letter prefix
followed by five digits. In most cases the letter
is suggestive of the family of metals identified:
for example, F for cast irons, T for tool
steel, S for stainless steels.
 This system provides the uniformity necessary
for efficient indexing, record keeping, data
storage and retrieval, and cross-referencing.
Although some of the digits in certain UNS
designation groups have special assigned
meanings, each series of UNS designations is
independent of the others in regard to the
significance of digits, thus permitting greater
flexibility and avoiding complicated and
lengthy UNS designations.
 Wherever feasible, and for the convenience of
the user, identification "numbers" from
existing systems are incorporated into the UNS
designations. For example, carbon steel
presently identified by the American Iron and
Steel Institute as "AISI 1020" is covered by the
UNS designation "G10200".
 Introduction to the SAE-AISI
Designation System
The SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers)
system uses a basic four-digit system to
designate the chemical composition of carbon
and alloy steels. The first digit (1), of this
designation indicates a carbon steel; i.e.,
carbon steels comprise 1xxx groups in the
SAE-AISI (American Iron and Steel Institute)
system and are subdivided into four categories
due to the discrepancy in certain fundamental
properties among them.
 For many years, certain grades of carbon and
alloy steels have been designated by a four-
digit AISE/SAE numerical index system that
identified the grades according to standard
chemical compositions. Since the American
Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) stoped writing
material specifications, the relationship
between AISI and grade designations has been
discontinued. From point of edition of the
1995 Iron and Steel Society (ISS) Strip Steel
Manual, the four-digit designations are
referred to exclusively as SAE Designations.
The SAE system uses a basic four-digit system to
designate the chemical composition of carbon and
alloy steels. The simplest system for designation of
steel is schematically shown in Figure
 Figure demonstrates that the SAE-AISI system
uses a four-digit number to designate a
carbon and alloy steel and refers to its specific
chemical composition. It is worth noting
however, that there are also certain types of
alloy steels that are designated by five digits
(51XXX; 52XXX).
 The first digit (1), of this designation indicates a
carbon steel; i.e., carbon steels comprise 1xxx
groups in the SAE-AISI system and are subdivided
into four categories due to the variance in certain
fundamental properties among them. Thus the
1. Plain carbon steels are comprised within the
10xx series (containing 1.00% Mn maximum);
2. Resulfurized carbon steels within the 11xx
series;
3. Resulfurized and rephosphorized carbon steels
within the 12xx series; and
4. Non-resulfurized high-manganeze (up-to
1.65%) carbon steels which are produced for
applications requiring good machinability are
comprised within the 15xx series.
 The SAE-AISI system then classifies all other
alloy steels using the same four digit index as
follows:
2 - Nickel steels;
3 - Nickel-chromium steels;
4 - Molybdenum steels;
5 - Chromium steels;
6 - Chromium-vanadium steels;
7 - Tungsten-chromium steels;
9 - Silicon-manganese steels.
 The second digit of the series indicates the
concentration of the major element in
percentiles (1 equals 1%). The last two digits
of the series indicate the carbon
concentration to 0.01%.
Example:
SAE 5130 indicates a chromium steel alloy,
containing 1% of chromium and 0.30% of
carbon.
Table 1 shows the SAE/AISI steel Numbering
designation system
 Additional letters added between the second
and third digits include B when boron is added
(between 0.0005 and 0.003%) for enhanced
hardenability, and L when lead is added
(between 0.15 and 0.35%) for enhanced
machinability. The prefix M is used to
designate merchant quality steel (the least
restrictive quality descriptor for hot-rolled
steel bars used in noncritical parts of
structures and machinery). The prefix E
(electric-furnace steel) and the
suffix H (hardenability requirements) are
mainly applicable to alloy steels.
 The Solution: Total Material-
Total Metals
Total Metals module provides you with the
ultimate solution for metals properties,
cross-referencing, and knowledge, by
integrating information from 59 Standard
Development Organizations (SDOs), and
hundreds of producers and other sources into
the most comprehensive database in the
world, powered with a superfast search
engine.
 Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE)
American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI)