Custom stainless steel parts can benefit from the alloy makeup of stainless steel. Stainless steel is usually composed of iron, a small amount of chromium, nickel and molybdenum, as well as a small amount of other metals. This alloyed metals can be used to produce stainless steel fabricated products that have unique advantages, such as the ability to resist corrosion and stress as well as to possess a burnished surface.
Types of Stainless Steel Fabricated Products
According to metallurgical properties, stainless steel is available in many different grades that can be divided into several families based on their metallurgical properties. These are the stainless steel families:
Ferritic: The ferritic stainless steel products in the Type 400 series are usually iron-chromium alloys. Despite the fact that they are not well suited to thermal hardening methods, cold working can be used to alter them. The ferritic stainless steel family is characterized by magnetism, ductility, corrosion resistance, and a variety of other characteristics. Type 430 (16 percent chrome) is one of the most commonly used grades in this group.
Austenitic:A variety of austenitic stainless steels are regarded as the Type 300 series and are quite common. These include grades 304 (18 percent chrome and 8 percent nickel) and 316 (16 percent chrome, 10 percent nickel, 2 percent molybdenum). A number of austenitic grades can be hardened by cold working, but cannot be effectively heat treated. They also share a number of common characteristics, such as low magnetism, corrosion resistance, and good formability.
Duplex: Having a structure that combines the traits of ferritic alloys and austenitic alloys, duplex alloys normally contain higher chromium levels than austenitic grades, and they also contain nickel and molybdenum. They are stronger than austenitic grades, and they are also more resistant to localized corrosion.
Martensitic: As part of the Type 400 series, martensitic steels are iron-chromium alloys as well. In contrast with ferritic steels, martensitic steels are capable of being hardened by heat treatment, though they have the same other characteristics as ferritic steels (good ductility, magnetism, corrosion resistance, etc.). Type 410 is widely used in fabrication applications.
Precipitation-hardened: The precipitation hardening process is similar to martensitic stainless steels in that they are able to achieve greater strength and corrosion resistance through the precipitation hardening process. A common fabricated grade is Type 17-4PH, which is 17 percent chromium and 4 percent nickel.
The Factors to Consider When Fabricating Stainless Steel
Choosing the right grade and family of stainless steel for your project can be a challenging task. Several factors should be taken into consideration, including the yield strength and the rate of work hardening. It is important to know which kinds of stainless steel are suitable for particular fabrication methods based on these two attributes. Here are some suggestions for matching a grade series to a fabrication method:
Ferritic: This material can be used for blanking, deep drawing, magnetic grinding, brazing, buffing, hot and cold forming, polishing, hot and cold riveting, perforating, cold shearing, soldering, and brazing. It can also be worked through machining and welding.
Martensitic:A good option for brazing, buffing, hot forming, perforating, polishing, cold shearing, soldering, and brazing. It is also useful for heat treatment hardening. It can be used for air hardening, blanking, magnetic and nonmagnetic grinding, as well as heat treatment hardening.
Austenitic: Especially suitable for use as a welding rod, spindle, brazing rod, soldering rod, cold and hot riveting rod, polishing rod, hot and cold forming rod, buffing rod, and brazing rod, as well as blanking, nonmagnetic grinding rod, perforating rod, cold shearing rod, and machining rod.
As some steel grades may be suitable for drawing and work hardening when used with thin wires, they may become impractical at larger diameters when the process becomes impractical. As an example, a wire of 5mm Type 304 will be hardened evenly throughout the product that will be fabricated, whereas a wire of 50mm Type 304 will be hardened uniformly on the outside but significantly weaker at the core if cold drawn under similar conditions. Consequently, it may be necessary to select a slower hardening grade when working with wider diameters as a result of this.For custom CNC machining services, click here