1/2/2020 An overview of the different types of Stainless Steel - Stainless Steel World

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Basic Facts

Bene ts of CRAs
History
Applications
Corrosion
Selection
Weldability

Stainless Steel and its Families

What is stainless steel?

Stainless steel is the generic name for a number of different steels used primarily because of their corrosion resistance.
All stainless steels share a minimum percentage of 10.5% chromium. Chromium is always the deciding factor, although
other elements, particularly nickel and molybdenum, are added to improve corrosion resistance. The success of the
material is based on the fact that it has one unique advantage. The chromium in the stainless steel has a great a nity for
oxygen, and will form a lm of chromium oxide on the surface of the steel at a molecular level. The lm itself is extremely
thin, about 130 Angstroms and one Angstrom is one millionth of a centimetre. This layer is described as passive (does
not react or in uence other materials), tenacious (clings to the layer of steel and is not transferred elsewhere) and self-
renewing (if damaged, more chromium from the steel will be exposed to the air and form more chromium oxide). This
means that over a period of years a stainless steel knife can literally be worn away by daily use and will still remain
stainless.

In many cases stainless steel is the most cost e cient solution. Although producing a component or fabrication in
stainless steel will often be more expensive that using ordinary steel due to the higher cost of stainless steel and
expertise required during processing it is the better life cycle costs of stainless steel that make it such an attractive
material. Through the use of a stainless steel a signi cantly longer service life and less maintenance costs for equipment
can be achieved. Furthermore, stainless steel is fully recyclable and has a high scrap value on de-commissioning.

Families of stainless steels and other corrosion resistant alloys

There are several families of stainless steel: Ferritic, Martensitic, Austenitic and Duplex. These names are derived from
the crystal structure of the steels, which determines their metallurgical behaviour. Other corrosion resistant alloys are
nickel based alloys and titanium and its alloys.

Ferritic stainless steels

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Ferritic stainless steels are plain chromium stainless steels with a chromium content varying between 10.5 and 18% and
a low carbon content. They are magnetic and not hardenable by heat treatment. Ferritic alloys have good ductility and
formability but a relatively poor high temperature strength compared to that of austenitic grades.

Martensitic stainless steels

Martensitic stainless steels were the rst stainless steels that were commercially developed (as cutlery) and have a
relatively high carbon content (0.1 - 1.2%) compared to other stainless steels. They are plain chromium steels containing
between 12 and 18% chromium. They are magnetic and hardenable by quenching and tempering like plain carbon steels
and nd their main application in cutlery, aerospace and general engineering.

A relatively new group of martensitic stainless steels are the supermartensitic stainless steels. The supermartensitic
grades combine high strength and low-temperature toughness with acceptable corrosion resistance in many
applications.  (please also see the section on supermartensitics in the "More Alloys" Fact File.)

Austenitic stainless steels

Austenitic stainless steels are non-magnetic. When nickel is added to stainless steel in su cient amounts the crystal
structure changes to "austenite". The basic composition of austenitic stainless steels is 18% chromium and 8% nickel.
This enhances their corrosion resistance and modi es the structure from ferritic to austenitic. Austenitic grades are the
most commonly used stainless steels accounting for more than 70% of production (type 304 is the most commonly
speci ed grade by far). They are not hardenable by heat treatment.

Super austenitic grades have enhanced pitting and crevice corrosion resistance compared with the ordinary austenitic or
duplex types. This is due the further additions of chromium, molybdenum and nitrogen to these grades.

Duplex stainless steels

 
These are stainless steels containing relatively high chromium levels (between 18 and 28%) and moderate amounts of
nickel (between 4.5 and 8%). The high corrosion resistance and the excellent mechanical properties combination of
duplex stainless steels can be explained by their chemical composition and balanced ('duplex') microstructure of
approximately equivalent volume fractions of ferrite and austenite.
Super duplex grades have enhanced pitting and crevice corrosion resistance compared with the ordinary austenitic or
duplex types. This is due the further additions of chromium, molybdenum and nitrogen to these grades.
Precipitation hardening stainless steels

 
Precipitation hardening stainless steels, like the martensitic types, can be strengthened (i.e. hardened) by heat treatment.
The mechanism is metallurgically different to the process in the martensitic types. This means that either martensitic or
austenitic precipitation hardening structures can be produced.
 
Nickel based alloys

Nickel based alloys are a family of alloys in which the principle constituent is nickel although it might be less than 50% of
the total composition. Nickel based alloys are used for a wide range of applications requiring aqueous corrosion, high
temperature strength of both. Also resistance to mechanical damage by many mechanisms such as fatigue or creep
damage is high.

Titanium

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Titanium is the fourth most abundant structural metal in the earth's crust and is the ninth industrial metal. Titanium is
used for its excellent corrosion and erosion resistance, high heat transfer e ciency, and superior strength-to-weight ratio.
Once judged to be expensive, titanium, in life-cycle costing, is now more often seen to be economical. The key to cost-
effective use is to utilise its unique properties and characteristics in the design rather than to substitute titanium for
another metal.
 
 

Stainless Steel World magazine is a leading international

magazine on stainless steels and corrosion

resistant alloys (CRAs) with a worldwide distribution.

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