As of August 2021, India was the second-largest crude steel producer globally, having an output of 9.9 MT. The easy accessibility of a cost-effective workforce and the high number of iron ore reserves make the country competitive in an international setup.
At present, there are over 3500 varied grades of steel. Your project’s needs influence the type of steel you should use. Common metal steel is categorized according to its physical and chemical properties.
You should always buy steel online India with a Mill Test certificate sold by suppliers who have three decades of experience in this domain. Here are the different types of steel that you can see utilized across a range of industries.
Carbon Steel
This grade of steel consists of a trace proportion of elements apart from iron and carbon. Carbon steels are the most prevalent of the four steel grades. They account for a majority of (90 percent) steel production.
There are three primary subgroups in carbon steel according to the amount of carbon the metal contains. They are:
- Mild Steels/Low Carbon Steels – They have 0.3 percent carbon.
- Medium Carbon Steels – They contain 0.3 to 0.6 percent carbon.
- High Carbon Steels – They contain over 0.6 percent carbon.
These steels are quite inexpensive to manufacture. Moreover, they are robust enough to be utilized in large-scale construction.
Alloy Steel
Alloy steels are made by mixing additional elements like copper, nickel, chromium, or aluminum. These alloying elements dramatically increase the durability, corrosion resistance, and ductility of the steel.
According to the composition, there are some specialty alloy steels that you can find in various aerospace applications and components of aircraft.
Stainless Steel
These steels consist of 10 to 20 percent chromium as an alloying element. They also contain other elements, like silicon, nickel, carbon, and manganese. Stainless steels have a high degree of corrosion resistance.
They can be safely employed in outside construction due to their enhanced ability to tolerate rough weather conditions. They are extensively used in electrical equipment. Many industries utilize stainless steel because of its sanitary properties.
Tool Steel
Tool steel is majorly employed to cut and drill equipment. The elements that enhance their durability and heat resistance are tungsten, cobalt, molybdenum, and vanadium.
Different Steel Grades
The grading systems allow you to categorize the types of steel according to the varied uses that differentiate them from one another. For example, the price at which producers cool steel can influence its strength on the molecular level.
Apart from it, the duration of time the manufacturers keep steel at crucial temperatures during this process also exerts a significant influence.
Two steel sheets having identical alloy content can even have varied grades according to their heat-treatment procedure. The different grading systems for steel are as follows:
- The ASTM Grading System – It assigns every metal a letter prefix according to its overall category. For example, the designation ‘A’ is for steel and iron materials. The grading system also gives a sequentially assigned number that relates to the particular properties of a metal.
- The SAE Grading System – In this system, a 4-digit number is used for the classification. The first two digits in this number indicate the type of steel and the concentration of the alloying element. The other two digits denote the concentration of carbon in the metal.
The consumption of India’s finished steel is forecasted to increase to 230 MT by the year 2030 to 2031. It’s always important to buy steel online in India from suppliers that provide wholesale prices and a hassle-free delivery process. Such suppliers also give you the option for an easy refund and have a cancellation policy.