Housingless Mills

High rigidity, reliability and quick roll change capabilities are the key features of the state of the art mill stands, which
are designed for producing bars, wire rod, angles, channels, and universal beams. The connection and disconnection
of the spindles and all the fluid utilities are fully automatic and therefore the stands can be interchanged very quickly.
Different versions including horizontal, vertical, convertible and drop-in-joker (which converts a horizontal to a vertical)
are in operation, allowing rapid adaptation to the variety of the rolled products needed to fulfill stringent market
demands. Line flexibility allows rolling with low temperature, high alloy, wide forming passes, etc.

Features:

High competent rigidity

Reduced stress path

Fully automatic operation

Axial roll adjustment

Automatic screw- down system

Possibility for adjustment under load

A roll balance system, which eliminates backlash

Minimum wear and positive engagement due to

self-balancing spindle support

Long bearing Life

Automatic utility connections

Sliding Stands
Modern 2-high sliding stands are reversible and fully automatic. They represent an innovation solution for roughing
and intermediate mills and constitute the latest stage of 3-high stand evolution.

Features:
A fixed rolling line with sliding stands to match the exact groove according to pass design reduced roller
table width.

Automatic Roll gap adjustment.

Simple fountains.

Advance billet manipulation system

Reduce bite angle due to adjustable entry speed.

Convertible Stands
Todays mills can be used in a wide range of configurations in order to provide an ultimate selection of products from
a single mill layout. It is possible to change from one unrelated product to another by simply pushing buttons and
without the lengthy procedures needed for an old style mill change over. Convertible stands allow either horizontal or
vertical positioning of the intermediate finishing trains in accordance with production requirements.

Features:
Less than two minutes to change the position
Excellent stand rigidity

Reduced fountain depth

Quick stand change system without crane requirement

Universal Stands
These stands are interchanged with horizontal stands when rolling structural shapes. In addition to the horizontal
rolls, the stands are fitted with a set of idler rolls to work the flanges.

Features:

Fast stand and roll change

Modular design to reduce crane requirement

Hydraulic vertical and horizontal roll adjustment

Highest rigidity with housing less design.

Gear Boxes
In order to meet the enhanced reliability and delivery requirements of
the growing industrial applications we have gone for a major
expansion and increase in capacity.

We have the required expertise in manufacturing precision gearboxes and have among the best facilities for the
entire process. Our team of engineers, metallurgists, modern manufacturing and testing facilities allow us to provide
reliability meant for heavy duty.

Our passion for manufacturing excellence and commitment to world class quality and on time delivery is clearly
reflected in our state of art manufacturing facility spread over 50,000sq.m. including:

G& E, Libherr and Pfauter gear hobbing machines

HOFLER gear grinding machines up to 2000mm and 25 modules

CNC SCHARMAAN Horizontal Boring machines

CNC MAAG gear profile testers

The best names in OD, ID and surface grinding

Stress relieving and shot blasting

KISSOFT based gear designs

Schenk Dynamics Balancing Machines

Sealed Quenched Furnace with Sub Zero Facility

Hand Held Digital Vibration Meter

Mitutoyo Model SJ-301Portable Surface roughness Measurement Surftest

Applications
We provide a variety of solutions for:

High Speed Gear Boxes tested up to 10,000 rpm

Steel Rolling Mills

Cement Industry

Sponge iron plants

Sugar Mills

Paper Industry

Agriculture

Other diversified industries

Product Range
The range of our gear boxes covers the following:

Sequential gearboxes

Helical Gearboxes

Planetary Gearboxes

Bevel Gearboxes

Quenching systems

Over 125 Quenching Systems to produce TMT bars along with flying shears have already been
commissioned.

Quenching Process Solutions in a capacity up to 100 Tons per hour.

Self-Tempering process that ensures high Weldability

TMT bars of Fe415, Fe500, fe 550 & fe 600 Grades

"TEMPCORE" endorsed production process

Technical partnership with Herbert Roth of Germany

TMT approved by SAIL and MES

Shears & Saws

Shears
Crop & Cobble Shear
The Shear are used in Hot Rolling to Crop Front End, Tail End and as well as to segment cutting in case of
eventualities. These Shears are start/stop type and are driven either with Flywheel mounted Pneumatic
Clutch/Brake or Direct DC motor driven. These shears are controlled through PLC System and provide very
close tolerance of the cut length.

Cooling Bed Dividing Shear (TMT Shear)

These Shears are used to cut cooling bed lengths. (Surface Temperature around 350C min.)These Shears
are generally installed after Quenching line & before entry to Cooling Bed.

Shears are Stop/Start and continuous operating type and driven by the Direct DC Motor Drive.These are
controlled through PLC system. Hence very close tolerance of cut length is achieved.

Rotary Shear
These cost effective Rotary Shears are used to Crop Font, Tail and as well as to scrap the pre quenched bars
during emergency. These Shears are continuous rotating type. Generally these Shears are used to trim Hot
Rolled Bars at considerably at lower speed.

Hot Saws
These Hot Saws are used in hot rolling to cut desired length and as well as top trim Front & Rear End. These shears
are capable are capable of cutting section size ranging from 80 to 600mm(Beam, Channel, Angle) and as well as
Square, Rounds of 40 to 250mm. These Hot saws presently are two types: Pendulum swinging type and horizontal
shift type.

Cold Saws
PPRM designs flying and static type cold shears, with clutch and brake or direct drive, to produce the ultimate and
product.

Features
Both open & closed types are available

Extremely precise cutting

Quick change device for blade replacement

Handles quenched rebar and high alloy steels.

Available with start stop drive.

Wire Rod Blocking Mills

PPRM provides the complete range of equipment needed for todays modern wire rod mill operations with specific
solutions for carbon steel, quality steel and special steel comprising HEEP Technology.
Our finishing blocks with design speeds of up to 80 m/second are in operation, offering maximum reliability and
efficiency, as well as maintaining close tolerances.

WIRE ROD BLOCK

Machine Design
The wire rod block has 3 main design characteristics:

All roll units are driven via a group drive with non-adjustable permanent relation between the roll rpm of the
roll units.

It is designed for twist free rolling between the roll units therefore the roll shafts are staggered from roll unit
to roll unit by 90

The roll units are the cantilever type, the roll ring and roll force are supported by 2 bearings left or right of the
CL of the pass line in comparison to double supported roll rings, where the pass line and the roll force is supported
between the bearings on left and right side.

Features:
45(X) arrangement for twist free rolling.

Low-cost production even for small order lots.

Most Compact stand design available on the market.

Rigid cassette type stands for under passed product tolerances.

Reduced bay height requirement.

Fast cassette change with standard mill crane open to access to top of cassette.

Fast roll change, without any need for special equipment.

Cooling Beds
Cooling beds naturally cool the material as well as cross transfer
towards the discharge end. PPRM cooling beds are designed using
standard elements that can be combined in accordance with plant
product mix requirements and production capacity.

Full mechanical component standardization assures constant equipment quality, as well as high performance levels.
Depending on differing speed requirements, cooling beds are entry can be completed with lifting aprons and natural
braking, magnetic braking, or twin channel and mechanical braking. For special applications, the cooling beds are
provided with slow cooling by insulated covers and forced cooling by water spray systems or water tanks. A twin or
double twin channel system for extremely high rolling speeds is available.

These types are:

Automatic rake type cooling bed which transfers the material by one pitch for every rake movement. These
are provided with twin channel bar delivery system or run in table with apron type diverters. The bed is provided
with bar alignment.

Turn over type cooling bed for alloy steel which rotates the bars by one revolution every time the rake
moves by a pitch. These impart superior straightness in material improvised metallurgical properties
as the bars are uniformly cooled.

Heavy Machinery
Tailor made to customer design and specifications for Steel/ Tube/
power/ sugar/ chemical plants.
Cost Effectiveness of an equipment builder would greatly depend on his in-house facilities and man power
competence, which in the ultimate analysis, would determine Quality of equipment and timely delivery.

Complete infrastructure and machines are available in-house in 100000 sq.m. of work space, to handle wide range of
jobs and tasks. We also specialize in machining of heavy jobs on Horizontal Boring, Vertical Borings, Gear Hobbings
to name a few. These machines are well supported by EOT cranes with a maximum capacity of 40 Tons having a lift
of 8.5m. Our facilities are backed by 100% stand by emergency power supply.
Satisfied customers include industry leaders like Larsen & Toubro ltd.& TISCO growth shop for Steel Plant and Bulk
Material handling Equipment, Flovel Hydro ltd. And Andritz for Power Plants, Mecon & Flat products (l) Ltd. For Cold
Rolling Mills, Krupp (India) Ltd. For Sugar plants, Siemens VAI & Danieli for Steel plant equipment.

CNC Roll turning & CNC Roll Notching

CNC Roll turning Lathe

Siemens 802D CNC controller with 0.001 resolution

1100mm width 4guideways bed for better rigidity

Large size spindle bore and heavy duty tail stock

Hardened and ground guideways with Turite-B for longer life

CNC Roll turning & CNC Roll Notching

Single Machine that does both Roll Knurling and name Engraving

Swivel head for accurate name engraving

Fly milling head for smooth Knurling

SIEMENS CNC controller with easy to use software

All international rolled ribbed bars standards can be engraved

Steel
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For other uses, see Steel (disambiguation).

"Steel worker" redirects here. For other uses, see Steel worker (disambiguation).

The steel cable of a colliery winding tower

Steels and other ironcarbon alloy

phases

Ferrite

Austenite

Cementite

Graphite
Martensite
Microstructures

Spheroidite

Pearlite

Bainite

Ledeburite
Tempered martensite

Widmanstatten structures
Classes

Crucible steel

Carbon steel

Spring steel

Alloy steel

Maraging steel

Stainless steel

Weathering steel

Tool steel

Other iron-based materials

Cast iron

Gray iron

White iron

Ductile iron

Malleable iron

Wrought iron

Steels are alloys of iron and other elements, primarily carbon, widely used in construction and other
applications because of their hightensile strengths and low costs. Carbon, other elements, and
inclusions within iron act as hardening agents that prevent the movement ofdislocations that
otherwise occur in the crystal lattices of iron atoms.
The carbon in typical steel alloys may contribute up to 2.1% of its weight. Varying the amount of
alloying elements, their formation in the steel either as solute elements, or as precipitated phases,
retards the movement of those dislocations that make iron comparatively ductile and weak, and thus
controls qualities such as the hardness, ductility, and tensile strength of the resulting steel. Steel's
strength compared to pure iron is only possible at the expense of ductility, of which iron has an
excess.

Although steel had been produced in bloomery furnaces for thousands of years, steel's use
expanded extensively after more efficient production methods were devised in the 17th century
for blister steel and then crucible steel. With the invention of the Bessemer processin the mid-19th
century, a new era of mass-produced steel began. This was followed by Siemens-Martin
process and then Gilchrist-Thomas process that refined the quality of steel. With their introductions,
mild steel replaced wrought iron.
Further refinements in the process, such as basic oxygen steelmaking (BOS), largely replaced
earlier methods by further lowering the cost of production and increasing the quality of the metal.
Today, steel is one of the most common materials in the world, with more than 1.3 billion tons
produced annually. It is a major component in buildings, infrastructure, tools, ships, automobiles,
machines, appliances, and weapons. Modern steel is generally identified by various grades defined
by assorted standards organizations.
Contents
[hide]

1Definitions and related materials

2Material properties
2.1Heat treatment

3Steel production

4History of steelmaking
o

4.1Ancient steel

4.2Wootz steel and Damascus steel

4.3Modern steelmaking

4.3.1Processes starting from bar iron

4.3.2Processes starting from pig iron

5Steel industry

6Recycling

7Contemporary steel
o

7.1Carbon steels

7.2Alloy steels

7.3Standards

8Uses
o

8.1Historical

8.2Long steel

8.3Flat carbon steel

8.4Stainless steel

8.5Low-background steel

9See also

10References
10.1Bibliography

11Further reading

12External links

Definitions and related materials[edit]

The carbon content of steel is between 0.002% and 2.1% by weight for plain iron-carbon alloys.
These values vary depending on alloying elements such
as manganese,chromium, nickel, iron, tungsten, carbon and so on. Basically, steel is an iron-carbon
alloy that does not undergo eutectic reaction. In contrast, cast iron does undergo eutectic reaction,
suddenly solidifying into solid phases at exactly the same temperature. Too little carbon content
leaves (pure) iron quite soft, ductile, and weak. Carbon contents higher than those of steel make an
alloy, commonly called pig iron, that is brittle (not malleable). While iron alloyed with carbon is called
carbon steel, alloy steel is steel to which other alloying elements have been intentionally added to
modify the characteristics of steel. Common alloying elements
include: manganese, nickel, chromium, molybdenum, boron,titanium, vanadium, tungsten, cobalt,
and niobium. Additional elements are also important in steel: phosphorus, sulfur, silicon, and traces
of oxygen, nitrogen, and copper.
[1]

Alloys with a higher than 2.1% carbon content, depending on other element content and possibly on
processing, are known as cast iron. Cast iron is not malleable even when hot, but it can be formed
by casting as it has a lower melting point than steel and good castability properties. Certain
compositions of cast iron, while retaining the economies of melting and casting, can be heat treated
after casting to make malleable iron or ductile iron objects. Steel is also distinguishable from wrought
iron (now largely obsolete), which may contain a small amount of carbon but large amounts of slag.
[1]

Material properties[edit]

Iron-carbon phase diagram, showing the conditions necessary to form different phases

Iron is commonly found in the Earth's crust in the form of an ore, usually an iron oxide, such
as magnetite,hematite etc. Iron is extracted from iron ore by removing the oxygen through
combination with a preferred chemical partner such as carbon that is lost to the atmosphere as
carbon dioxide. This process, known assmelting, was first applied to metals with
lower melting points, such as tin, which melts at approximately 250 C (482 F) and copper, which
melts at approximately 1,100 C (2,010 F). In comparison, cast iron melts at approximately 1,375 C
(2,507 F). Small quantities of iron were smelted in ancient times, in the solid state, by heating the
ore buried in a charcoal fire and welding the metal together with a hammer, squeezing out the
impurities. With care, the carbon content could be controlled by moving it around in the fire.
[2]

All of these temperatures could be reached with ancient methods that have been used since
the Bronze Age. Since the oxidation rate of iron increases rapidly beyond 800 C (1,470 F), it is
important that smelting take place in a low-oxygen environment. Unlike copper and tin, liquid or solid
iron dissolves carbon quite readily. Smelting, using carbon to reduce iron oxides, results in an alloy
(pig iron) that retains too much carbon to be called steel. The excess carbon and other impurities
are removed in a subsequent step.
[2]

Other materials are often added to the iron/carbon mixture to produce steel with desired
properties. Nickeland manganese in steel add to its tensile strength and make the austenite form of
the iron-carbon solution more stable, chromium increases hardness and melting temperature,
and vanadium also increases hardness while making it less prone to metal fatigue.
[3]

To inhibit corrosion, at least 11% chromium is added to steel so that a hard oxide forms on the metal
surface; this is known as stainless steel. Tungsten interferes with the formation of cementite,
allowing martensite to preferentially form at slower quench rates, resulting in high speed steel. On
the other hand, sulfur, nitrogen, and phosphorus make steel more brittle, so these commonly found
elements must be removed from the steel melt during processing.
[3]

The density of steel varies based on the alloying constituents but usually ranges between 7,750 and
8,050 kg/m (484 and 503 lb/cu ft), or 7.75 and 8.05 g/cm (4.48 and 4.65 oz/cu in).
3

[4]

Even in a narrow range of concentrations of mixtures of carbon and iron that make a steel, a number
of different metallurgical structures, with very different properties can form. Understanding such
properties is essential to making quality steel. At room temperature, the most stable form of pure iron
is the body-centered cubic (BCC) structure calledferrite or -iron. It is a fairly soft metal that can
dissolve only a small concentration of carbon, no more than 0.005% at 0 C (32 F) and 0.021 wt%
at 723 C (1,333 F). At 910 C pure iron transforms into a face-centered cubic (FCC) structure,
called austenite or -iron. The FCC structure of austenite can dissolve considerably more carbon, as
much as 2.1% (38 times that of ferrite) carbon at 1,148 C (2,098 F), which reflects the upper
carbon content of steel, beyond which is cast iron.
[5]

[6]

When steels with less than 0.8% carbon (known as a hypoeutectoid steel), are cooled,
the austenitic phase (FCC) of the mixture attempts to revert to the ferrite phase (BCC). The carbon
no longer fits within the FCC structure, resulting in an excess of carbon. One way for carbon to leave
the austenite is for it to precipitate out of solution as cementite, leaving behind a surrounding phase
of BCC iron that is low enough in carbon to take the form of ferrite, resulting in a ferrite matrix with
cementite inclusions. Cementite is a hard and brittle intermetallic compound with the chemical
formula of Fe C. At the eutectoid, 0.8% carbon, the cooled structure takes the form of pearlite,
named for its resemblance tomother of pearl. On a larger scale, it appears as a lamellar structure of
ferrite and cementite. For steels that have more than 0.8% carbon, the cooled structure takes the
form of pearlite and cementite.
3

[7]

Perhaps the most important polymorphic form of steel is martensite, a metastable phase that is
significantly stronger than other steel phases. When the steel is in an austenitic phase and
then quenched rapidly, it forms into martensite, as the atoms "freeze" in place when the cell structure
changes from FCC to a distorted form of BCC as the atoms do not have time enough to migrate and
form the cementite compound. Depending on the carbon content, the martensitic phase takes
different forms. Below approximately 0.2% carbon, it takes on a ferrite BCC crystal form, but at
higher carbon content it takes a body-centered tetragonal (BCT) structure. There is no
thermal activation energy for the transformation from austenite to martensite. Moreover, there is no
compositional change so the atoms generally retain their same neighbors.
[8]

Martensite has a lower density than does austenite, so that the transformation between them results
in a change of volume. In this case, expansion occurs. Internal stresses from this expansion
generally take the form of compression on the crystals of martensite and tension on the remaining
ferrite, with a fair amount of shear on both constituents. If quenching is done improperly, the internal
stresses can cause a part to shatter as it cools. At the very least, they cause internal work

hardening and other microscopic imperfections. It is common for quench cracks to form when steel
is water quenched, although they may not always be visible.
[9]

Heat treatment[edit]
Main article: Heat treating carbon steel
There are many types of heat treating processes available to steel. The most common
are annealing, quenching, and tempering. Annealing is the process of heating the steel to a
sufficiently high temperature to soften it. This process goes through three
phases: recovery, recrystallization, and grain growth. The temperature required to anneal steel
depends on the type of annealing to be achieved and the constituents of the alloy.
[10]

Quenching and tempering first involves heating the steel to the austenite phase then quenching it
in water or oil. This rapid cooling results in a hard but brittle martensitic structure. The steel is then
tempered, which is just a specialized type of annealing, to reduce brittleness. In this application the
annealing (tempering) process transforms some of the martensite into cementite, or spheroidite and
hence reduces the internal stresses and defects. The result is a more ductile and fracture-resistant
steel.
[8]

[11]

Steel production[edit]
Main article: Steelmaking
See also: List of countries by steel production

Iron ore pellets for the production of steel

When iron is smelted from its ore, it contains more carbon than is desirable. To become steel, it must
be reprocessed to reduce the carbon to the correct amount, at which point other elements can be
added. In the past, steel facilities would cast the raw cast iron product into ingots which would be
stored until use in further refinement processes that resulted in the finished product. In modern
facilities, the initial product is close to the final composition and is continuously cast into long slabs,
cut and shaped into bars and extrusions and heat treated to produce a final product. Today only a
small fraction is cast into ingots. Approximately 96% of steel is continuously cast, while only 4% is
produced as ingots.
[12]

The ingots are then heated in a soaking pit and hot rolled into slabs, billets, or blooms. Slabs are hot
or cold rolled into sheet metal or plates. Billets are hot or cold rolled into bars, rods, and wire.
Blooms are hot or cold rolled into structural steel, such as I-beams andrails. In modern steel mills
these processes often occur in one assembly line, with ore coming in and finished steel products
coming out. Sometimes after a steel's final rolling it is heat treated for strength, however this is
relatively rare.
[13]

[14]

History of steelmaking[edit]
Main articles: History of ferrous metallurgy, History of the steel industry (18501970) and History of
the steel industry (1970present)

Bloomery smelting during theMiddle Ages

Ancient steel[edit]
Steel was known in antiquity, and possibly was produced by managing bloomeries and crucibles, or
iron-smelting facilities, in which they contained carbon.
[15][16]

The earliest known production of steel are pieces of ironware excavated from an archaeological
site in Anatolia (Kaman-Kalehoyuk) and are nearly 4,000 years old, dating from 1800 BC.
Horace identifies steel weapons like the falcata in the Iberian Peninsula, while Noric steelwas used
by the Roman military.
[17]

[18]

[19]

The reputation of Seric iron of South India (wootz steel) amongst the Greeks, Romans, Egyptians,
East Africans, Chinese and the Middle East grew considerably. South Indian and Mediterranean
[16]

sources including Alexander the Great (3rd c. BC) recount the presentation and export to the Greeks
of 100 talents of such steel. Metal production sites in Sri Lanka employed wind furnaces driven by
the monsoon winds, capable of producing high-carbon steel. Large-scale Wootz steel production
in Tamilakam using crucibles and carbon sources such as the plant Avram occurred by the sixth
century BC, the pioneering precursor to modern steel production and metallurgy.
[15][16]

Steel was produced in large quantities in Sparta around 650 BC.

[20][21]

The Chinese of the Warring States period (403221 BC) had quench-hardened steel, while
Chinese of the Han dynasty (202 BC 220 AD) created steel by melting together wrought iron with
cast iron, gaining an ultimate product of a carbon-intermediate steel by the 1st century AD.
The Haya people of East Africa invented a type of furnace they used to make carbon steel at
1,802 C (3,276 F) nearly 2,000 years ago. East African steel has been suggested by Richard
Hooker to date back to 1400 BC.
[22]

[23]

[24]

[25][26]

Wootz steel and Damascus steel[edit]

Main articles: Wootz steel and Damascus steel
Evidence of the earliest production of high carbon steel in the Indian Subcontinent are found
in Kodumanal in Tamil Nadu area, Golconda in Andhra Pradesh area and Karnataka, and
in Samanalawewa areas of Sri Lanka. This came to be known as Wootz steel, produced in South
India by about sixth century BC and exported globally.
The steel technology existed prior to 326
BC in the region as they are mentioned in literature of Sangam Tamil, Arabic and Latin as the finest
steel in the world exported to the Romans, Egyptian, Chinese and Arabs worlds at that time - what
they called Seric Iron. A 200 BC Tamil trade guild in Tissamaharama, in the South East of Sri
Lanka, brought with them some of the oldest iron and steel artefacts and production processes to
the island from the classical period.
The Chinese and locals in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka had
also adopted the production methods of creating Wootz steel from the Chera Dynasty Tamils of
South India by the 5th century AD.
In Sri Lanka, this early steel-making method employed a
unique wind furnace, driven by the monsoon winds, capable of producing high-carbon steel.
Since the technology was acquired from the Tamiliansfrom South India, the origin of steel
technology in India can be conservatively estimated at 400500 BC.
[27]

[28][29]

[30]

[31][32][33][34]

[35][36]

[37]

[38]

[28][38]

Wootz, also known as Damascus steel, is famous for its durability and ability to hold an edge. It was
originally created from a number of different materials including various trace elements, apparently
ultimately from the writings of Zosimos of Panopolis. However, the steel was an old technology in
India when King Porus presented a steel sword to theEmperor Alexander in 326 BC.
It was
essentially a complicated alloy with iron as its main component. Recent studies have suggested
that carbon nanotubes were included in its structure, which might explain some of its legendary
qualities, though given the technology of that time, such qualities were produced by chance rather
than by design. Natural wind was used where the soil containing iron was heated by the use of
wood. The ancient Sinhalese managed to extract a ton of steel for every 2 tons of soil, a
remarkable feat at the time. One such furnace was found in Samanalawewa and archaeologists
were able to produce steel as the ancients did.
[citation needed]

[39]

[37]

[37][40]

Crucible steel, formed by slowly heating and cooling pure iron and carbon (typically in the form of
charcoal) in a crucible, was produced in Merv by the 9th to 10th century AD. In the 11th century,
there is evidence of the production of steel in Song China using two techniques: a "berganesque"
method that produced inferior, inhomogeneous, steel, and a precursor to the modern Bessemer
process that used partial decarbonization via repeated forging under a cold blast.
[29]

[41]

Modern steelmaking[edit]

A Bessemer converter inSheffield, England

Since the 17th century the first step in European steel production has been the smelting of iron ore
into pig iron in a blast furnace. Originally employing charcoal, modern methods use coke, which
has proven more economical.
[42]

[43][44][45]

Processes starting from bar iron[edit]

Main articles: Blister steel and Crucible steel

In these processes pig iron was "fined" in a finery forge to produce bar iron, which was then used in
steel-making.
[42]

The production of steel by the cementation process was described in a treatise published in Prague
in 1574 and was in use in Nuremberg from 1601. A similar process for case hardening armour and
files was described in a book published in Naples in 1589. The process was introduced to England in
about 1614 and used to produce such steel by Sir Basil Brooke at Coalbrookdale during the 1610s.
[46]

The raw material for this process were bars of iron. During the 17th century it was realized that the
best steel came from oregrounds iron of a region north of Stockholm, Sweden. This was still the
usual raw material source in the 19th century, almost as long as the process was used.
[47][48]

Crucible steel is steel that has been melted in a crucible rather than having been forged, with the
result that it is more homogeneous. Most previous furnaces could not reach high enough
temperatures to melt the steel. The early modern crucible steel industry resulted from the invention
of Benjamin Huntsman in the 1740s. Blister steel (made as above) was melted in a crucible or in a
furnace, and cast (usually) into ingots.
[48][49]

Processes starting from pig iron[edit]

A Siemens-Martin steel oven from theBrandenburg Museum of Industry.

White-hot steel pouring out of an electric arc furnace.

The modern era in steelmaking began with the introduction of Henry Bessemer's Bessemer
process in 1855, the raw material for which was pig iron. His method let him produce steel in large
quantities cheaply, thus mild steel came to be used for most purposes for which wrought iron was
formerly used. The Gilchrist-Thomas process (or basic Bessemer process) was an improvement to
the Bessemer process, made by lining the converter with a basic material to remove phosphorus.
[50]

[51]

Another 19th-century steelmaking process was the Siemens-Martin process, which complemented
the Bessemer process. It consisted of co-melting bar iron (or steel scrap) with pig iron.
[48]

These methods of steel production were rendered obsolete by the Linz-Donawitz process of basic
oxygen steelmaking (BOS), developed in the 1950s, and other oxygen steel making methods. Basic
oxygen steelmaking is superior to previous steelmaking methods because the oxygen pumped into

the furnace limits impurities that previously had entered from the air used. Today,electric arc
furnaces (EAF) are a common method of reprocessing scrap metal to create new steel. They can
also be used for converting pig iron to steel, but they use a lot of electrical energy (about 440 kWh
per metric ton), and are thus generally only economical when there is a plentiful supply of cheap
electricity.
[52]

[53]

Steel industry[edit]
See also: History of the modern steel industry, Global steel industry trends, Steel production by
country and List of steel producers
This section may need to be rewritten entirely to comply with Wikipedia's quality
standards. You can help. The discussion page may contain suggestions. (December 2014)

Steel production (in million tons) by country in 2007

A steel plant in the United Kingdom.

It is common today to talk about "the iron and steel industry" as if it were a single entity, but
historically they were separate products. The steel industry is often considered an indicator of
economic progress, because of the critical role played by steel in infrastructural and
overall economic development.
[54]

In 1980, there were more than 500,000 U.S. steelworkers. By 2000, the number of steelworkers fell
to 224,000.
[55]

The economic boom in China and India has caused a massive increase in the demand for steel in
recent years. Between 2000 and 2005, world steel demand increased by 6%. Since 2000, several
Indian and Chinese steel firms have risen to prominence like Tata Steel (which bought Corus
Group in 2007), Shanghai Baosteel Group Corporation and Shagang Group. ArcelorMittal is
however the world's largest steel producer.
[56]

In 2005, the British Geological Survey stated China was the top steel producer with about one-third
of the world share; Japan, Russia, and the US followed respectively.
[57]

In 2008, steel began trading as a commodity on the London Metal Exchange. At the end of 2008, the
steel industry faced a sharp downturn that led to many cut-backs.
[58]

The world steel industry peaked in 2007. That year, ThyssenKrupp spent $12 billion to build the two
most modern mills in the world, in Calvert, Alabama and Sepetiba, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The
worldwide Great Recession starting in 2008, however, sharply lowered demand and new
construction, and so prices fell. ThyssenKrupp lost $11 billion on its two new plants, which sold steel
below the cost of production.

Recycling[edit]
Main article: Ferrous metal recycling
Steel is one of the world's most-recycled materials, with a recycling rate of over 60% globally; in the
United States alone, over 82,000,000 metric tons (81,000,000 long tons) was recycled in the year
2008, for an overall recycling rate of 83%.
[59]

[60]

Contemporary steel[edit]

Bethlehem Steel in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania was one of the world's largest manufacturers of steel before its 2003 closure and
later conversion into a casino.

See also: Steel grades

Carbon steels[edit]
Modern steels are made with varying combinations of alloy metals to fulfill many purposes. Carbon
steel, composed simply of iron and carbon, accounts for 90% of steel production. Low alloy steel is
alloyed with other elements, usually molybdenum, manganese, chromium, or nickel, in amounts of
up to 10% by weight to improve the hardenability of thick sections. High strength low alloy steelhas
small additions (usually < 2% by weight) of other elements, typically 1.5% manganese, to provide
additional strength for a modest price increase.
[3]

[1]

[1]

[61]

Recent Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) regulations have given rise to a new variety of
steel known as Advanced High Strength Steel (AHSS). This material is both strong and ductile so
that vehicle structures can maintain their current safety levels while using less material. There are
several commercially available grades of AHSS, such as dual-phase steel, which is heat treated to
contain both a ferritic and martensitic microstructure to produce a formable, high strength steel.
Transformation Induced Plasticity (TRIP) steel involves special alloying and heat treatments to
stabilize amounts of austenite at room temperature in normally austenite-free low-alloy ferritic steels.
By applying strain, the austenite undergoes a phase transition to martensite without the addition of
heat. Twinning Induced Plasticity (TWIP) steel uses a specific type of strain to increase the
effectiveness of work hardening on the alloy.
[62]

[63]

[64]

Carbon Steels are often galvanized, through hot-dip or electroplating in zinc for protection against
rust.
[65]

Alloy steels[edit]
Stainless steels contain a minimum of 11% chromium, often combined with nickel, to
resist corrosion. Some stainless steels, such as the ferritic stainless steels are magnetic, while
others, such as the austenitic, are nonmagnetic. Corrosion-resistant steels are abbreviated as
CRES.
[66]

Some more modern steels include tool steels, which are alloyed with large amounts of tungsten
and cobalt or other elements to maximize solution hardening. This also allows the use
of precipitation hardening and improves the alloy's temperature resistance. Tool steel is generally
used in axes, drills, and other devices that need a sharp, long-lasting cutting edge. Other specialpurpose alloys include weathering steels such as Cor-ten, which weather by acquiring a stable,
rusted surface, and so can be used un-painted. Maraging steel is alloyed with nickel and other
elements, but unlike most steel contains little carbon 0.01%). This creates a very strong but
still malleable steel.
[1]

[67]

[68]

Eglin steel uses a combination of over a dozen different elements in varying amounts to create a
relatively low-cost steel for use in bunker buster weapons. Hadfield steel (after Sir Robert Hadfield)
or manganese steel contains 1214% manganese which when abraded strain hardens to form an
incredibly hard skin which resists wearing. Examples include tank tracks, bulldozer blade edges and
cutting blades on the jaws of life.
[69]

In 2015 a breakthrough in creating a strong light aluminium steel alloy which might be suitable in
applications such as aircraft was announced by researchers at Pohang University of Science and
Technology. Adding small amounts of nickel was found to result in precipitation as nano particles of
brittle B2 intermetallic compounds which had previously resulted in weakness. The result was a
cheap strong light steel alloynearly as strong as titanium at ten percent the cost which is slated
for trial production at industrial scale by POSCO, a Korean steelmaker.
[70]

[when?]

[71][72]

Standards[edit]
Most of the more commonly used steel alloys are categorized into various grades by standards
organizations. For example, the Society of Automotive Engineers has a series ofgrades defining
many types of steel. The American Society for Testing and Materials has a separate set of
standards, which define alloys such as A36 steel, the most commonly used structural steel in the
United States.
[73]

[74]

Uses[edit]

A roll of steel wool

Iron and steel are used widely in the construction of roads, railways, other infrastructure, appliances,
and buildings. Most large modern structures, such as stadiums and skyscrapers, bridges,
and airports, are supported by a steel skeleton. Even those with a concrete structure employ steel
for reinforcing. In addition, it sees widespread use in major appliances and cars. Despite growth in
usage ofaluminium, it is still the main material for car bodies. Steel is used in a variety of
other construction materials, such as bolts, nails, andscrews and other household products and
cooking utensils.
[75]

Other common applications include shipbuilding, pipelines, mining, offshore

construction, aerospace, white goods (e.g. washing machines), heavy equipment such as
bulldozers, office furniture, steel wool, tools, and armour in the form of personal vests or vehicle
armour (better known as rolled homogeneous armour in this role).

Historical[edit]

A carbon steel knife

Before the introduction of the Bessemer process and other modern production techniques, steel was
expensive and was only used where no cheaper alternative existed, particularly for the cutting edge
of knives, razors, swords, and other items where a hard, sharp edge was needed. It was also used
for springs, including those used in clocks and watches.
[48]

With the advent of speedier and thriftier production methods, steel has become easier to obtain and
much cheaper. It has replaced wrought iron for a multitude of purposes. However, the availability
of plastics in the latter part of the 20th century allowed these materials to replace steel in some
applications due to their lower fabrication cost and weight. Carbon fiber is replacing steel in some
cost insensitive applications such as aircraft, sports equipment and high end automobiles.
[76]

Long steel[edit]

A steel bridge

A steel pylon suspending overhead power lines

As reinforcing bars and mesh in reinforced concrete

Railroad tracks

Structural steel in modern buildings and bridges

Wires

Input to reforging applications

Flat carbon steel[edit]

Major appliances

Magnetic cores

The inside and outside body of automobiles, trains, and ships.

Stainless steel[edit]

A stainless steel gravy boat

Main article: Stainless steel

Cutlery

Rulers

Surgical instruments

Watches

Guns

Rail passenger vehicles

Low-background steel[edit]
Main article: Low-background steel

Steel manufactured after World War II became contaminated with radionuclides due to nuclear
weapons testing. Low-background steel, steel manufactured prior to 1945, is used for certain
radiation-sensitive applications such as Geiger counters and radiation shielding.

See also[edit]

Carbon steel

Rolling mill

Steel abrasive

Global steel industry trends

Rust Belt

Steel mill

Iron in folklore

Second industrial revolution

Galvanising

Knife metal

Silicon steel

Damascus steel

Machinability

Wootz steel

Pelletizing

Tamahagane, use

Rolling

Tinplate

Steel material properties

The properties of structural steel result from both its chemical composition and
its method of manufacture , including processing during fabrication. Product
standards define the limits for composition, quality and performance and these
limits are used or presumed by structural designers. This article reviews the
principal properties that are of interest to the designer and indicates the relevant
standards for particular products. Specification of steelwork is covered in a separate
article.

Schematic stress / strain diagram for steel

Contents
[hide]

1 Material properties required for design

2 Factors that influence mechanical properties
3 Strength
3.1 Yield strength

3.1.1 Hot rolled steels

3.1.2 Cold formed steels

3.1.3 Stainless steels

4 Toughness
5 Ductility
6 Weldability
7 Other mechanical properties of steel
8 Durability

8.1 Weathering steel

8.2 Stainless steel

9 References
10 Resources
11 See also
12 CPD

[top]Material

properties required for design

The properties that need to be considered by designers when specifying steel

construction products are:

Strength

Toughness

Ductility

Weldability

Durability.

For design, the mechanical properties are derived from minimum values specified in
the relevant product standard. Weldability is determined by the chemical content of
the alloy, which is governed by limits in the product standard. Durability depends on
the particular alloy type - 'ordinary' carbon steel, 'weathering steel' or stainless
steel .
[top]Factors

that influence mechanical properties

Steel derives its mechanical properties from a combination of chemical composition,

heat treatment and manufacturing processes. While the major constituent of steel is
iron, the addition of very small quantities of other elements can have a marked
effect upon the properties of the steel. The strength of steel can be increased by the
addition of alloys such as manganese, niobium and vanadium. However, these alloy
additions can also adversely affect other properties, such
as ductility , toughness and weldability .
Minimizing the sulphur level can enhance ductility , and toughness can be improved
by the addition of nickel. The chemical composition for each steel specification is
therefore carefully balanced and tested during its production to ensure that the
appropriate properties are achieved.
The alloying elements also produce a different response when the material is
subjected to heat treatments involving cooling at a prescribed rate from a particular
peak temperature. The manufacturing process may involve combinations of heat
treatment and mechanical working that are of critical importance to the
performance of the steel.

Mechanical working takes place as the steel is being rolled or formed. The more
steel is rolled, the stronger it becomes. This effect is apparent in the material
standards, which tend to specify reducing levels of yield strength with increasing
material thickness.
The effect of heat treatment is best explained by reference to the various
production process routes that can be used in steel manufacturing, the principal
ones being:

As-rolled steel

Normalized steel

Normalized-rolled steel

Thermomechanically rolled (TMR) steel

Quenched and tempered (Q&T) steel.

Steel cools as it is rolled, with a typical rolling finish temperature of around 750C.
Steel that is then allowed to cool naturally is termed 'as-rolled' material.
Normalizing takes place when as-rolled material is heated back up to approximately
900C, and held at that temperature for a specific time, before being allowed to cool
naturally. This process refines the grain size and improves the mechanical
properties, specifically toughness. Normalized-rolled is a process where the
temperature is above 900C after rolling is completed. This has a similar effect on
the properties as normalizing, but it eliminates the extra process of reheating the
material. Normalized and normalized-rolled steels have an 'N' designation.
The use of high tensile steel can reduce the volume of steel needed but the steel
needs to be tough at operating temperatures, and it should also exhibit sufficient
ductility to withstand any ductile crack propagation. Therefore, higher strength
steels require improved toughness and ductility, which can be achieved only with
low carbon clean steels and by maximizing grain refinement. The implementation of
the thermomechanical rolling process (TMR) is an efficient way to achieve this.
Thermomechanically rolled steel utilises a particular chemistry of the steel to permit
a lower rolling finish temperature of around 700C. Greater force is required to roll

the steel at these lower temperatures, and the properties are retained unless
reheated above 650C. Thermomechanically rolled steel has an 'M' designation.
The process for Quenched and Tempered steel starts with a normalized material at
900C. It is rapidly cooled or 'quenched' to produce steel with high strength and
hardness, but low toughness. The toughness is restored by reheating it to 600C,
maintaining the temperature for a specific time, and then allowing it to cool
naturally (Tempering). Quenched and tempered steels have a 'Q' designation.
Quenching involves cooling a product rapidly by immersion directly into water or oil.
It is frequently used in conjunction with tempering which is a second stage heat
treatment to temperatures below the austenitizing range. The effect of tempering is
to soften previously hardened structures and make them tougher and more ductile.

Schematic temperature / time graph of rolling processes

[top]Strength
[top]Yield

strength

Yield strength is the most common property that the designer will need as it is the
basis used for most of the rules given in design codes . In European Standards for
structural carbon steels (including weathering steel ), the primary designation
relates to the yield strength, e.g. S355 steel is a structural steel with a specified
minimum yield strength of 355 N/mm.

The product standards also specify the permitted range of values for the ultimate
tensile strength (UTS). The minimum UTS is relevant to some aspects of design.
[top]Hot rolled steels

For hot rolled carbon steels, the number quoted in the designation is the value of
yield strength for material up to 16 mm thick. Designers should note that yield
strength reduces with increasing plate or section thickness (thinner material is
worked more than thick material and working increases the strength). For the two
most common grades of steel used in UK, the specified minimum yield strengths
and the minimum tensile strength are shown in table below for steels to
BS EN 10025-2[1] .
Yield strength (N/mm2) for nominal
thickness t (mm)
Grad
e

t 16

16 < t
40

40 < t
63

Tensile strength (N/mm2) for nomina

thickness t (mm)

63 < t
80

3 < t 100

100 < t 150

S275 275

265

255

245

410

400

S355 355

345

335

325

470

450

Minimum yield and tensile strength for common steel grades

The UK National Annex to BS EN 1993-1-1[2] allows the minimum yield value for the
particular thickness to be used as the nominal (characteristic) yield strength f y and
the minimum tensile strength fu to be used as the nominal (characteristic) ultimate
strength.
Similar values are given for other grades in other parts of BS EN 10025 and for
hollow sections to BS EN 10210-1[3] .
[top]Cold formed steels

There is a wide range of steel grades for steels suitable for cold forming. Minimum
values of yield strength and tensile strength are specified in the relevant product
standard BS EN 10346:2009[4].

BS EN 1993-1-3[5] tabulates values of basic yield strength f yb and ultimate tensile

strength fu that are to be used as characteristic values in design.
[top]Stainless steels

Grades of stainless steel are designated by a numerical 'steel number' (such as

1.4401 for a typical austenitic steel) rather than the 'S' designation system for
carbon steels. The stress-strain relationship does not have the clear distinction of a
yield point and stainless steel 'yield' strengths for stainless steel are generally
quoted in terms of a proof strength defined for a particular offset permanent strain
(conventionally the 0.2% strain).
The strengths of commonly used structural stainless steels range from 170 to
450 N/mm. Austenitic steels have a lower yield strength than commonly used
carbon steels; duplex steels have a higher yield strength than common carbon
steels. For both austenitic and duplex stainless steels, the ratio of ultimate strength
to yield strength is greater than for carbon steels.
BS EN 1993-1-4[6] tabulates nominal (characteristic) values of yield strength f y and
ultimate minimum tensile strength fu for steels to BS EN 10088-1[7] for use in design.
[top]Toughness

V-notch impact test specimen

It is in the nature of all materials to contain some imperfections. In steel these
imperfections take the form of very small cracks. If the steel is insufficiently tough,

the 'crack' can propagate rapidly, without plastic deformation and result in a 'brittle
fracture'. The risk of brittle fracture increases with thickness, tensile stress, stress
raisers and at colder temperatures. The toughness of steel and its ability to resist
brittle fracture are dependent on a number of factors that should be considered at
the specification stage. A convenient measure of toughness is the Charpy V-notch
impact test - see image on the right. This test measures the impact energy required
to break a small notched specimen, at a specified temperature, by a single impact
blow from a pendulum.
The various product standards specify minimum values of impact energy for
different sub-grades of each strength grade. For non-alloy structural steels the
designations of the subgrades are JR, J0, J2 and K2. For fine grain steels
and quenched and tempered steels (which are generally tougher, with higher
impact energy) different designations are used. A summary of the toughness
designations is given in the table below.
Standard

BS EN 10025-2
BS EN 10025-5
BS EN 10210-1

Subgrade

Impact strength

Test temperature

JR

27J

20oC

J0

27J

0o C

J2

27J

-20oC

K2

40J

-20oC

40J

-20oc

NL

27J

-50oc

40J

-20oc

ML

27J

-50oc

30J

-20oc

QL

30J

-40oc

QL1

30J

-60oc

BS EN 10025-3

BS EN 10025-4

BS EN 10025-6

Specified minimum impact energy for carbon steel sub-grades

For thin gauge steels for cold forming, no impact energy requirements are specified
for material less than 6 mm thick.
The selection of an appropriate sub-grade, to provide adequate toughness in design
situations is given in BS EN 1993-1-10[8]. The rules relate the exposure temperature,
stress level etc, to a 'limiting thickness' for each sub-grade of steel. Guidance on
selection of an appropriate sub-grade is given in ED007.
Stainless steels are generally much tougher than carbon steels; minimum values
are specified in BS EN 10088-4[9]. BS EN 1993-1-4[6] states that austenitic and
duplex steels are adequately tough and not susceptible to brittle fracture for service
temperatures down to -40C.

[top]Ductility

Ductility is a measure of the degree to which a material can strain or elongate

between the onset of yield and eventual fracture under tensile loading as
demonstrated in the figure below. The designer relies on ductility for a number of
aspects of design, including redistribution of stress at the ultimate limit state, bolt
group design, reduced risk of fatigue crack propagation and in thefabrication
processes of welding, bending and straightening. The various standards for the
grades of steel in the above table insist on a minimum value for ductility so the
design assumptions are valid and if these are specified correctly the designer can
be assured of their adequate performance.

Stress strain behaviour for steel

[top]Weldability

Welding stiffeners onto a large fabricated beam

(Image courtesy of Mabey Bridge Ltd)
All structural steels are essentially weldable. However, welding involves locally
melting the steel, which subsequently cools. The cooling can be quite fast because
the surrounding material, e.g. the beam, offers a large 'heat sink' and the weld (and

the heat introduced) is usually relatively small. This can lead to hardening of the
'heat affected zone' (HAZ) and to reduced toughness. The greater the thickness of
material, the greater the reduction of toughness.
The susceptibility to embrittlement also depends on the alloying elements
principally, but not exclusively, the carbon content. This susceptibility can be
expressed as the 'Carbon Equivalent Value' (CEV), and the various product
standards for carbon steels standard give expressions for determining this value.
BS EN 10025[1] sets mandatory limits for CEV for all structural steel products
covered, and it is a simple task for those controlling weldingto ensure that welding
procedure specifications used are qualified for the appropriate steel grade, and
CEV.

[top]Other

mechanical properties of steel

Other mechanical properties of structural steel that are important to the designer
include:

Modulus of elasticity, E = 210,000 N/mm

Shear modulus, G = E/[2(1 + )] N/mm, often taken as 81,000 N/mm

Poisson's ratio, = 0.3

Coefficient of thermal expansion, = 12 x 10 /C (in the ambient

-6

temperature range).
[top]Durability

Offsite application of corrosion protection

(Image courtesy of Hempel UK Ltd.)
A further important property is that of corrosion prevention. Although special
corrosion resistant steels are available these are not normally used in building
construction. The exception to this is weathering steel .
The most common means of providing corrosion protection to construction steel is
by painting or galvanizing. The type and degree of coating protection required
depends on the degree of exposure, location, design life, etc. In many cases, under
internal dry situations no corrosion protection coatings are required other than
appropriate fire protection. Detailed information on the corrosion protection of
structural steel is available.
[top]Weathering

steel

Weathering steel is a high strength low alloy steel that resists corrosion by forming
an adherent protective rust 'patina', that inhibits further corrosion. No protective
coating is needed. It is extensively used in the UK for bridges and has been used
externally on some buildings. It is also used for architectural features and sculptural
structures such as the Angel of the North.

Angel of the North

[top]Stainless

steel

Typical stress-strain curves for stainless steel and carbon steel in the
annealed condition
Stainless steel is a highly corrosion-resistant material that can be used structurally,
particularly where a high-quality surface finish is required. Suitable grades for
exposure in typical environments are given below.

The stress-strain behaviour of stainless steels differs from that of carbon steels in a
number of respects. The most important difference is in the shape of the stressstrain curve. While carbon steel typically exhibits linear elastic behaviour up to the
yield stress and a plateau before strain hardening is encountered, stainless steel
has a more rounded response with no well-defined yield stress. Therefore, stainless
steel 'yield' strengths are generally defined for a particular offset permanent strain
(conventionally the 0.2% strain), as indicated in the figure on the right which shows
typical experimental stress-strain curves for common austenitic and duplex
stainless steels. The curves shown are representative of the range of material likely
to be supplied and should not be used in design.

Description

Basic chromium-nickel
austenitic steels

Molybdenumchromiumnickel
austenitic steels

Minimum 0.2%
Grad proof strength
e
(N/mm2)

Ultimate
tensile
strength
(N/mm2)

Elongation
at fracture
(%)

1.43
01
210

520 720

45

1.43
07
200

500 700

45

1.44
01
220

520 670

45

1.44
04
220

520 670

45

1.41
62
450

650 850

30

1.44
62
460

640 840

25

Duplex steels

Specified mechanical properties of common stainless steels to EN

10088-4[9]

The mechanical properties apply to hot rolled plate. For cold rolled and hot rolled
strip, the specified strengths are 10-17% higher.

ISO
9223[10] Atmospheric
Corrosion Class

Typical outdoor environment

Suitable stainless steel

C1 (Very low)

Deserts and arctic areas (very

low humidity)

1.4301/1.4307, 1.4162

C2 (Low)

Arid or low pollution (rural)

1.4301/1.4307, 1.4162

C3 (Medium)

Coastal areas with low deposits

of salt
Urban or industrialised areas
with moderate pollution

1.4401/1.4404, 1.4162
(1.4301/1.4307)

C4 (High)

Polluted urban and industrialised

atmosphere
Coastal areas with moderate salt
deposits
Road environments with de-icing 1.4462, (1.4401/1.4404), other mo
salts
highly alloyed duplexes or austenit

C5 (Very high)

Severely polluted industrial

atmospheres with high humidity
Marine atmospheres with high
degree of salt deposits and
1.4462, other more highly alloyed
splashes
duplexes or austenitics
Guidelines for stainless steel selection

Materials suitable for a higher class may be used for lower classes but might not be
cost effective. Materials within brackets might be considered if some moderate
corrosion is acceptable. Accumulation of corrosive pollutants and chlorides will be
higher in sheltered locations; hence it might be necessary to choose a
recommended grade from the next higher corrosion class.
[top]References

1.

^ 1.0 1.1 BS EN 10025-2:2004 Hot rolled products of structural steels. Technical delivery conditions for non-alloy
structural steels, BSI.

2.

^ NA to BS EN 1993-1-1:2005+A1:2014, UK National Annex to Eurocode 3: Design of steel structures General

rules and rules for buildings, BSI

3.

^ BS EN 10210-1:2006 Hot finished structural hollow sections of non-alloy and fine grain steels. Technical delivery
requirements, BSI.

4.

^ BS EN 10346:2009 Continuously hot-dip coated steel flat products. Technical delivery conditions, BSI.

5.

^ BS EN 1993-1-3:2006 Eurocode 3: Design of steel structures. General rules - Supplementary rules for coldformed members and sheeting, BSI.

6.

^ 6.0 6.1 BS EN 1993-1-4:2006 Eurocode 3. Design of steel structures. General rules. Supplementary rules for
stainless steels, BSI

7.

^ BS EN 10088-1:2005 Stainless steels. List of stainless steels, BSI

8.

^ BS EN 1993-1-10:2005 Eurocode 3. Design of steel structures. Material toughness and through-thickness

properties, BSI.

9.

^ 9.0 9.1 BS EN 10088-4:2009 Stainless steels. Technical delivery conditions for sheet/plate and strip of corrosion
resisting steels for construction purposes, BSI.

10. ^ ISO 9223: 1992, Corrosion of metals and alloys Corrosivity of atmospheres Classification, International
Standards Organisation

[top]Resources

SCI ED007 Selection of steel sub-grade in accordance with the Eurocodes,

2012

[top]See

also

Steel manufacture

Specification of steelwork

Weathering steel

Corrosion protection

Design codes and standards

Fabrication

Welding

[top]CPD

Steel grades and specifications

Category: Design

MAIN FEATURES OF A MODERN WIRE ROD

MILL
POSTED BY SATYENDRA ON JAN 3, 2014 IN TECHNICAL | 0 COMMENTS

Main Features of a modern Wire Rod Mill

The objective of a wire rod mill (WRM) is to reheat and roll steel billets into wire rods. The production of
wire rods in wire rod mills is subject to constant change. The growing demands on the quality of the wire
rods as well as on the flexibility and cost effectiveness of the wire rod mills has necessitated the
development of new and innovative technologies and processes. Modern wire rod mills are high speed
mills capable of rolling of smaller dimensions at high production rates, while at the same time keeping
investments and operating costs at the reasonable levels. As a rule, wire rod mills are designed for an
annual output of between 300,000 t and over 800,000 t (two strand mills). The mills are capable of rolling
at speeds ranging from 50 meters per second to 120 meters per seconds. Typical product sizes are within
the 5.0 mm to 20 mm range. The range of materials comprises low to high carbon steels, cold heading
steels, wire drawing steels, alloy steels, spring steels, ball bearing steels, electrode quality steels,
reinforcement bars and tool steels. Modern wire rod mills are expected to meet the following
requirements.

High mill availability coupled with high productivity and high yields.
Meeting the need of low maintenance.
Meeting the need of lower energy consumption.
Close dimensional tolerances of wire rods in the range of +/- 0.10 mm and ovality in the range of
around 0.2 mm.
Low scale loss in wire rods of around 0.5 % to 0.6 %.
Negative tolerances (In sectional weight).
No variation in dimensions throughout the length of the rod.
Uniform physical properties.
Uniform weight with nominal variation between middle and back end.

For achieving these demanding requirements, many important features are incorporated in the modern
wire rod mills. Some of these are described below.

Reheating furnace Modern wire rod mills are equipped with energy efficient walking beam
furnaces or walking hearth furnace which are normally computerized controlled. These reheating
furnaces uniformly heat the billets to the target temperatures at the required production rates and
without skid marks and without cold spots. These furnaces are capable of receiving cold or hot billets
as the charge material in the furnace.
Housingless roll stand The housingless (HL) roll stands are used normally in roughing and
intermediate group of stands in modern wire rod mills. The modular design permits the use of HL

stand cassettes in all possible configurations such as horizontal, vertical, tiltable and universal
configuration. The stand sizes differ, depending on the necessary dimensions of the rolls and roll
journals, pass schedule, pass form as well as the gearbox and motor characteristics. The main
features of the HL stands are compactness and rigidity of components, low roll bending modulus,
durable multi row roller bearing with self aligning chocks under load, backlash free balancing of
chocks, roller beams designed for simple and exact adjustment of guides and guards etc. The
advantages of theses stands include (i) saving in the depth and size of the foundation (ii) the rolled
product meets the required form and dimensional tolerances, (iii) there is time savings for stand
changes as the roll changing takes place outside the rolling line, (iv) there is significant reduction in
time for maintenance due to lesser number of components and easier accessibility, (v) automated roll
gap adjustment, and (vi) operational flexibility since the same stand unit can be used in any position.
Cantilever roll stands Cantilever (CL) roll stands are compact stands which are used in a wide
range of sizes for a variety of applications. These applications include (i) single strand mills in
horizontal and vertical arrangement, (ii) in split intermediate trains of two or more strands mills, and as
prefinisher stands in wire rod delivery sections. The advantages of these stands include (i) Smaller
foundations; (ii) cassettes of the same stand type are interchangeable even between horizontal and
vertical stands, (iii) high load bearing strength even with small diameters hence ideally suited for high
speed wire rod blocks, (iv) optimum accessibility, and (v) fast roll and stand changing.
Cooling and equalizing loop The material entering the no twist block must be intensively cooled

for final rolling at low temperatures. This must then be followed by a sufficiently long equalizing section
to allow the metallurgical properties to be achieved uniformly over the cross section of the finished
wire rods. Without equalization section, the temperature difference between surface and core can be
so large that different micro structures can be created during the subsequent forming process. On the
other hand, there are the steel grades that have to be rolled as hot as possible and for which a long
equalizing section leads to deterioration in quality. The loop technology allows these two demands to
be perfectly reconciled. The material from the intermediate train can take the short direct route or the
route via the loop with additional water boxes and long equalizing sections before being rolled in no
twist blocks.
No twist block It is also known as no twist mill. In wire rod mills, it represents one of the key

elements. Only through this development, it has become possible to safely roll thin wire rods at speed
of over 120 m/sec. The no twist blocks can be of 4, 6, 8, and 10 roll stands for twist free rolling. A
primary gearbox drives the roll units via two common shafts. No twist blocks having two different sizes
of roll units are available, with ? 170/150 mm rolls and ? 223/200 mm rolls. All roll units are identical
and interchangeable. No twist blocks are available with reduction ratios varying from 10 % to 25 % per
pass, depending on steel grades to be rolled. The block is now even designed for a speed of 150
m/s. No twist blocks uses tungsten carbide rings having a pass life of 600 t to 700 t with super finished
surface of the end product. The advantage of the no twist blocks are (i) ultra heavy duty housings, (ii)
low ring changing time, (iii) negligible spring action, (iv) reduced maintenance, (v) simpler section
control, remote adjustments under load, and (vi) flexibility of rolling of different wire rod grades.
Flexible reduction sizing (FRS) block This block has been developed by SMS Meer for rolling
higher grades and simultaneously improving the metallurgical properties of the rolled product. This is a
four strand block with speed shift gear boxes. It is installed down line of a no twist wire rod block. On
the FRS block all dimensions can be finish rolled with the advantage one family rolling, which means
that only one pass size is used in each stand over the whole size range. Due to the cooling section in

between the no twist block and FRS block thermo mechanical rolling becomes feasible. There are
many good design features in this block.
Reducing sizing mill (RSM) It is a versatile sought after rolling technology. RSM takes

advantage of the special features of the 3-roll technology, in which the spread during deformation is
low and the deformation efficiency is high. The advantages of the wire rod reducing sizing mill are
many. It can be integrated after a conventional finishing block, boosting the mill productivity on small
sizes by up to 60 %. Its extreme precision has been proven in many practical applications. The pass
design is patented and enables true single family rolling from the first stand after the reheat furnace to
the last stand of the block ahead of the reducing sizing mill. Added after a conventional rod finishing
block, the patented RSM unit can significantly increase finishing speeds on smaller sizes.
Thermo-mechanical rolling It is also known as low temperature rolling and is basically a method

for on line control of the final material properties during the rolling process. It involves material
deformation applied at the last passes of the mill, within the temperature ranges corresponding to
partial recrystallization or to suppression of recrystallization. As soon as recrystallization is
suppressed, grain refining phenomena occurs, resulting in improved technological properties of the
final wire rod product. In addition, the rod surface quality improves considerably. The advantages of
thermo-mechanical rolling are fine grain size, avoidance of off line normalizing, improved low
temperature toughness, better properties after heat treatment for case hardening steels, shorter
annealing time for spring steel, improved fatigue strength on the final component, higher tensile
strength for micro-alloyed steels achieved directly in-line, and reduced decarburizing depth etc. The
use of two blocks (usually a six stands and a four stands) allows all the dimensions of the wire rods to
be rolled thermo-mechanically and inexpensively with high production rates. By splitting the no twist
block, it becomes possible to finish roll in four passes maximum. With sufficient cooling and good
temperature equalization over the cross section, thermo mechanical rolling at high production rate is
thus possible. Cooling and equalizing loop before the no twist block plays an important role during the
thermal mechanical rolling. It allows the ingoing temperature into the first no twist block to be reduced
to 750 deg C and that with a temperature profile of less than 50 deg C. This precondition of reaching
750 deg C again before the second no twist block for the sections to be rolled with ten passes become
feasible and hence making thermo mechanical rolling possible even with small dimensions.
Drive for no twist block Normally all the stands of a no twist block have complex gear box
configurations which are subject to wear and maintenance. They are driven jointly by one or more
huge motors (up to 7000 kW) in tandem arrangement via a primary gearbox and two common shafts.
No twist block has limitation since it can able to roll with fixed reduction ratios which require fix roll ring
diameters. SMS Meer has developed an electronic gear box which controls the motors of a no twist
block relative to one another so that that the stands function like a no twist block and can be more
precisely controlled. This drive has been named as MEERdrive and due to it the fixed reduction ratios
between the stands are eliminated. This helps in roll sizing as a wide range of different area
reductions can be rolled in the same stand. The roll ring management also gets simplified and the
number of passes required can also be reduced.
Loop laying head The laying of different wire rod sizes in uniform loops with the loop laying
head even at high rolling speed is an important criterion. Further due to thermo mechanical rolling for
many grades the laying temperatures for certain grades are greatly reduced due to metallurgical
reasons. This has put more demands on the laying head particularly the laying tubes and they are to
be made of special material.

Control cooling conveyor The controlled cooling conveyor system is one of the important parts
of a wire rod mill for achieving the desired properties of the wire rods for a wide range of different steel
grades. The optimum combination of speed, fan power and cover position on the conveyor enables
processing in a wide range of conditions, including both fast and slow cooling modes within a single
system. This capability enables wire rod mills to produce a broad spectrum of plain carbon and alloy
steels, as well as stainless steels and other specialty grades. During forced cooling, air is blown
through the loosened windings with maximum manpower and open covers to cool the wire rods as
quickly as possible in order to achieve the laminar pearlite. During delayed cooling, the wire rod loops
are transported without fans, with the cover closed and at low conveyor speed in order to keep the
temperature in a given range for as long as possible. This enables achievement of a ferritic/pearlitic
microstructure of the wire rods. The results are improved as rolled rod properties. This enables the
production of more grades in a directly usable condition, thus reducing or eliminating downstream
processes, such as spheroidize annealing.
Reform ring distributor The reform ring distributor collects rings high in the reform tub using a
rotating blade for optimal placement. This system shortens the coil package, easing shipping and
storage space concerns, which in turn reduces costs. Improved collection also results in better-shaped
coils for fewer tangles and snags at payoff.

The layout of the modern wire rod mill of Arcelor Mittal at Duisburg Germany is shown at Fig 1. The mill
was commissioned in 2012.

Fig 1 Lay out of a modern wire rod mill