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Glossary

Two Categories of Terms: Common Terms in the Malaysian Steel Industry and Chemical Composition of Steel

ANGLES

Steel bars bent at a right angle, often used for structural support and bracing

BILLET

A semi-finished metal product used as a starting material in the production of steel bars, rods, and wire.

BLACK PIPES

Steel pipes without a galvanized or protective coating, often used for plumbing and transportation of liquids or gases.

CARBON STEEL

Steel primarily composed of iron and carbon, typically containing small amounts of other elements. It is one of the most commonly used materials in the steel industry.

CHANNELS

Steel sections with a ā€œCā€ shape cross-section, are commonly used in construction and infrastructure projects.

CORROSION RESISTANCE

The ability of steel to withstand rust and deterioration when exposed to environmental factors like moisture and chemicals.

FLAT BARS

Steel bars with a flat surface, often used in construction, fabrication, and manufacturing

GALVANIZED STEEL

Steel coated with a layer of zinc to protect against corrosion. Commonly used in outdoor and marine applications.

HOLLOW SECTIONS

Steel sections with a hollow core, commonly used in structural applications for their strength-to-weight ratio.

HOT-ROLLED VS. COLD-ROLLED

Different methods of forming steel. Hot-rolled steel is heated and rolled at high temperatures, while cold-rolled steel is processed at room temperature, resulting in different properties.

I-BEAMS

Beams with an ā€œIā€ shape cross-section, are widely used in construction and engineering to support heavy loads.

MILD STEEL

A low-carbon steel with relatively low strength and malleability, often used for construction and general engineering applications.

ROLLING MILL

A facility where steel is processed, shaped, and fabricated into various forms such as sheets, coils, and bars.

STAINLESS STEEL

A corrosion-resistant steel alloy containing at least 10.5% chromium, often used in applications where resistance to rust and staining is crucial, such as kitchen appliances and medical equipment.

STEEL GRADES

Different steel alloys and compositions with specific properties designed for particular applications. Examples include ASTM A36, S275JR, and SS316.

STRUCTURAL STEEL

Steel used in construction to create structural elements like beams, columns, and frameworks

SUPPLY CHAIN

The network of companies and processes involved in the production, distribution, and sale of steel products.

TENSILE STRENGTH

The maximum stress a material can withstand while being stretched or pulled before breaking.

WELDING

The process of joining two pieces of steel together using heat and pressure, often used in construction and fabrication.

YIELD STRENGTH

The amount of stress a material can withstand without permanent deformation

This glossary should provide you with a foundational understanding of key terms in the steel industry in Malaysia. Keep in mind that the steel industry is vast and diverse, so there may be additional industry-specific terms that are relevant to your particular niche or focus within the industry.

Carbon (C): Carbon

As the carbon content in steel increases, the yield point and tensile strength increase, but the plasticity and impact resistance decrease. When the carbon content exceeds 0.23%, the welding performance of the steel deteriorates. Therefore, low-alloy structural steel used for welding contains carbon The amount generally does not exceed 0.20%. High carbon content will also reduce the atmospheric corrosion resistance of steel, and high-carbon steel in open-air stockyards will easily rust; in addition, carbon can increase the cold brittleness and aging sensitivity of steel.

Silicon (Si): Silicon

Silicon is added as a reducing agent and deoxidizer during the steelmaking process, so killed steel contains 0.15-0.30% silicon. If the silicon content in steel exceeds 0.50-0.60%, silicon is considered an alloying element. Silicon can significantly increase steel’s elastic limit, yield point, and tensile strength, so it is widely used in spring steel. Adding 1.0-1.2% silicon to quenched and tempered structural steel can increase the strength by 15-20%. Silicon is combined with molybdenum, tungsten, chromium, etc. to improve corrosion resistance and oxidation resistance, and can be used to make heat-resistant steel. Low-carbon steel containing 1-4% silicon has extremely high magnetic permeability and is used in the electrical industry to make silicon steel sheets. Increased silicon content will reduce the welding performance of steel.

Manganese (Mn): Mangenese

In the steelmaking process, manganese is a good deoxidizer and desulfurizer. Generally, steel contains 0.30-0.50% manganese. When more than 0.70% is added to carbon steel, it is called “manganese steel”. Steel with a higher amount of steel than ordinary steel not only has sufficient toughness but also has higher strength and hardness improves the hardenability of the steel, and improves the hot working performance of the steel. For example, the yield point of 16Mn steel is 40% higher than that of A3. Steel containing 11-14% manganese has extremely high wear resistance and is used in excavator buckets, ball mill linings, etc. Increased manganese content weakens the corrosion resistance of steel and reduces welding performance.

Phosphorus (P): Phosphorus

Under normal circumstances, phosphorus is a harmful element in steel, which increases the cold brittleness of the steel, worsens the welding performance, reduces the plasticity, and worsens the cold bending performance. Therefore, the phosphorus content in steel is usually required to be less than 0.045%, and the requirement for high-quality steel is even lower.

Sulfur (S): Sulfur

Sulfur is also a harmful element under normal circumstances. It causes the steel to become hot and brittle, reduces its ductility and toughness, and causes cracks during forging and rolling. Sulfur is also detrimental to welding performance, reducing corrosion resistance. Therefore, the sulfur content is usually required to be less than 0.055%, and high-quality steel is required to be less than 0.040%. Adding 0.08-0.20% sulfur to steel can improve the machinability and is usually called free-cutting steel.

Chromium (Cr): Chromium

In structural steel and tool steel, chromium can significantly increase strength, hardness, and wear resistance, but at the same time reduce plasticity and toughness. Chromium can also improve the oxidation resistance and corrosion resistance of steel, so it is an important alloy element of stainless steel and heat-resistant steel.

Nickel (Ni): Nickle

Nickel can increase the strength of steel while maintaining good plasticity and toughness. Nickel has high corrosion resistance to acids and alkalis and has anti-rust and heat resistance at high temperatures. However, since nickel is a scarce resource, other alloying elements should be used instead of nickel-chromium steel.

Molybdenum (Mo): Molybdenum

Molybdenum can refine the grains of steel, improve hardenability and thermal strength properties, and maintain sufficient strength and creep resistance at high temperatures (long-term stress at high temperatures will cause deformation, which is called creep). Adding molybdenum to structural steel can improve mechanical properties. It can also inhibit the brittleness of alloy steel caused by fire. In tool steel, the redness can be improved.

Titanium (Ti): Titanium

Titanium is a strong deoxidizer in steel. It can make the internal structure of steel dense and refine the grain force; reducing aging sensitivity and cold brittleness. Improve welding performance. Adding appropriate titanium to chromium 18 nickel 9 austenitic stainless steel can avoid intergranular corrosion.

Vanadium (V): Vanadium

Vanadium is an excellent deoxidizer for steel. Adding 0.5% vanadium to steel can refine the structure grains and improve strength and toughness. The carbide formed by vanadium and carbon can improve hydrogen corrosion resistance under high temperatures and pressure.

Tungsten (W): Wolfram = Tungsten (Tu)

Tungsten has a high melting point and a large specific gravity. It is an alloy element of noble materials. Tungsten and carbon form tungsten carbide, which has high hardness and wear resistance. Adding tungsten to tool steel can significantly improve the red hardness and thermal strength and is used as cutting tools and forging dies.

Niobium (Nb):

Niobium can refine the grains reduce the overheat sensitivity temper the brittleness of steel, and improve the strength, but the plasticity and toughness are reduced. Adding niobium to ordinary low-alloy steel can improve its resistance to atmospheric corrosion and hydrogen, nitrogen, and ammonia corrosion at high temperatures. Niobium improves welding properties. Adding niobium to austenitic stainless steel can prevent intergranular corrosion.

Cobalt (Co): Cobalt

Cobalt is a rare precious metal, mostly used in special steels and alloys, such as heat-strength steels and magnetic materials.

Copper (Cu): Copper

The steel made by Wuhan Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. from Daye ore often contains copper. Copper can improve strength and toughness, especially atmospheric corrosion resistance. The disadvantage is that it is prone to thermal brittleness during hot processing, and the plasticity is significantly reduced when the copper content exceeds 0.5%. When the copper content is less than 0.50%, it does not affect weldability.

Aluminum (Al): Aluminum

Aluminum is a commonly used deoxidizer in steel. Adding a small amount of aluminum to steel can refine the grains and improve impact toughness, such as 08Al steel for deep drawing thin plates. Aluminum also has anti-oxidation and anti-corrosion properties. The combination of aluminum, chromium, and silicon can significantly improve the high-temperature peeling performance and high-temperature corrosion resistance of steel. The disadvantage of aluminum is that it affects the hot processing performance, welding performance, and steel cutting performance.

Boron (B): Boron

Adding trace amounts of boron to steel can improve the density and hot-rolling properties of the steel and increase its strength.

Nitrogen (N): Nitrogen

Nitrogen can improve the strength, low-temperature toughness, and weldability of steel, and increase aging sensitivity.

Rare earth (Xt):

Rare earth elements refer to the 15 lanthanide elements with atomic numbers 57-71 in the periodic table of elements. These elements are all metals, but their oxides are very similar to “earth”, so they are customarily called rare earth. Adding rare earths to steel can change the composition, shape, distribution, and properties of inclusions in the steel, thereby improving various properties of the steel, such as toughness, weldability, and cold working properties. Adding rare earths to plowshare steel can improve wear resistance.

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