Stainless Steel

Stainless steel is an iron-carbon alloy with a minimum chromium content of 10.5%. The name of this alloy originated from the fact that it has higher resistance to staining, corrosion or rusting than ordinary steel. Stainless steel, if its alloy type and grade is not detailed, is also referred to as ‘corrosion resistant steel’ and this is particularly true for the aviation industry. Though stainless steel has higher resistance to corrosion, it is nevertheless important to select the correct type and grade of stainless steel to meet the specific-needs of any application. Today there are many different types of grades and surface finishes of stainless steel. There are 150 grades of stainless steel, however, of these 15 are most commonly used.

Stainless steel is also classified or named on the basis of its crystalline structure into austenitic, ferritic, martensitic, precipitation-hardening martensitic, duplex, etc. Among all types, austenitic stainless steel constitutes a major chunk of global steel production, with a share of over 70%. Austenitic stainless steel contains at most 0.15% carbon, at least 16% chromium and some percentage of nickel and/or manganese. Nickel and Manganese enable the alloy to maintain its original structure at all temperatures lying between the cryogenic region and the melting point of the alloy.

Stainless steel can be milled into sheets, plates, bars, wire and tubes. Due to its non-corrosive nature stainless steel is used to make kitchen sinks, cabinets, scales, discs, barbecues, fridge freezers, kettles, fabricators, car exhausts, etc.