1. Carbon (C)
Carbon is the most important element in steel, it is essential in steels which have to be hardened by quenching and the degree of carbon controls the hardness and strength of the material, as well as response to heat treatment (hardenability).
And ductility, forgeability and machinability will decrease if the amount of carbon increases, as well as weldability properties of the steel.
2. Silicon (Si)
Silicon is one of the principal deoxidizers for steel. Silicon helps to remove bubbles of oxygen from the molten steel. It is the element that is most commonly used to produce semi- and fully killed steels, and normally appears in amounts less than 0.40 percent, usually only small amounts (0.20%) are present in rolled steel when it is used as a deoxidizer. However, in steel castings, 0.35 to 1.00% is commonly present.
Silicon dissolves in iron and tends to strengthen it. Some filler metals may contain up to 1% to provide enhanced cleaning and deoxidation for welding on contaminated surfaces. When these filler metals are used for welding on clean surfaces, the resulting weld metal strength will be markedly increased. Silicon increases strength and hardness but to a lesser extent than manganese. The resulting decrease in ductility could resent cracking problems.
3. Manganese (Mn)
Manganese could be the second most important element after Carbon on steel. Mn has effects similar to those of carbon, and the steel producer uses these two elements in combination to obtain a material with the desired properties. Manganese is a necessity for the process of hot rolling of steel by its combination with oxygen and sulfur.
Its presence has below main effects:
? It is a mild deoxidant acting as a cleanser taking the sulphur and oxygen out of the melt into the slag.
? It increases the harden ability and tensile strength but decreases ductility.
? It combines with sulphur to form globular manganese sulphides, essential in free cutting steels for good machinability.
4. Phosphorus (P)
Although it increases the tensile strength of steel and improves machinability it is generally regarded as an undesirable impurity because of its embrittling effect.
Effect of phosphorus element will have various effects on steel depending on concentration.
The maximum amount of phosphorus in higher grade steel is between 0.03 to 0.05% due to the fact that is detrimental. Up to 0.10% of phosphorus in low-alloy high-strength steels will increase the strength as well as improve the steel’s resistance against corrosion. The possibility of brittlement increases when the content in hardened steel is too high. Even though the strength and hardness is improved, the ductility and toughness decreases.
5. Sulfur (S)
Sulfur is normally regarded as an impurity and has an adverse effect on impact properties when a steel is high in sulphur and low in manganese. Sulphur improves machinability but lowers transverse ductility and notched impact toughness and has little effects on the longitudinal mechanical properties.
ABOUT KEVA
Keva Casting is a professional casting company that focuses on Construction, Machinery, Automobile, Hardware, Pipeline and many other industries.
We provide top quality products with the best service based on our complete production chain including our own mold design, advanced production techniques, and full management of the supply chain. Keva Casting has two factories located in Zhucheng, China's Shandong province.
We use "shell molding", which is a new technique that has been developed in recent years.This new technique has simplified production procedures and reduced air pollution compared with traditional sand casting and investment casting. Shell making and core making are faster to ensure production in enormous quantities. The dimensions and surface finishing are satisfactory for all kinds of industrial requirements. Besides supplying our own formwork & scaffolding systems, our casting products also supply OEM services in various industries.