Steel Alloys - Different Types Used in Several Industries

Steel alloys are popular in metal manufacturingThese are stainless steel alloys belonging to the 400
industries. With a wide array of forms and shapesseries. Ferrite is more popular as iron and is the same
derived from this industrial product, these itemssubstance that is capable of making cast iron and
became popular in the fabrication and feedstocksteel obtain their respective magnetic properties.
industries. Machining, forging, casting, assembly andThey are not hardened even under heat treatments
spinning processes are employed to produce outputsor solutions. With cold working though, they may be
from these products.hardened moderately. The best characteristics of
The shapes and forms produced form this industrialferritic alloys extend to its resistance to corrosion as
product include rods, bars, tubes, plates, sheets,well as its ductile qualities and oxidation properties.
shims, spheres, foil, billets, wire, slabs and strips.Martensitic alloys
Some other materials like powders, ingots and fillersA martensite is a hard form of steel structure and
may be produced. Round, hollow, hexagonal and coilmay sometimes be a result of displacive
stocks are also end products of steel alloys. Learningtransformation of crystal structures. This type of
about the several alloy types gives bettersteel alloy is formed through the rapid cooling or
understanding of these industrial products.quenching process of the austenitic alloy. While it is
Austenitic alloysmagnetic and ductile, it is only capable of resisting
An austenite is produced from a combination of ancorrosion in milder environments.
iron solution and an alloy. When it cools it changesOther types of alloys of steel
into other mixtures like ferrite and cementite. AtBesides the three forms of steel alloys discussed
some extents, pearlite may also be produced. Thisabove, there are two more types to take note of.
type of steel alloy is favored because of its capabilityFirst, is the precipitation hardened stainless steels
to resist corrosion and its increased strength fromdefined as metals produced from the combination of
the results of cold working.chromium and nickel. The alloy component of this
Austenitic alloys have two types of series. First is themetal comes from either aluminum or nickel. They
200 series containing manganese, nickel andmay undergo processes for hardening and
chromium. The second types is known as the 300strengthening. The other type is known as duplex
series that contains only nickel and chromium. Thestainless steels and is termed as such because of the
mechanical properties of austenite is changed withpresence of two other types of alloys of steel -
the use of quenching, annealing or tempering.austenitic and ferritic.
Ferritic alloys