Learning more about stainless steel
Dear readers,
I’d like to start off this issue of Stainless Steel World with a short quiz, so here goes:
(1) Why are small amounts of sulphur added to stainless steel?
(2) What do we mean by the word ‘pickling’ in association with stainless steels?
(3) What is meant by ‘pitting corrosion’?
(4) What is duplex?
(5) What is meant by ‘annealing’?
(6) What are the ‘200 series’ of stainless steels?
“Too easy”, some of you will say: “Not a test at all.” However, I am not sure of the outcome for everyone – no disrespect intended. It’s a fact that when I talk to many of you, you tell me that there is a general lack of knowledge about stainless steels, particularly among many of the younger people who enter the business nowadays. This is often caused, for example, by universities not catering to the needs of industry or by people crossing over industrial borders to work in fields where their initial knowledge is limited. As such there is a real need for courses that address these shortcomings by enabling those interested to pick up the basics about stainless steels very quickly. This brings me nicely around to the seminar that we will hold on Wednesday afternoon, November 11th at the Stainless Steel World Conference and Expo in Maastricht on “Understanding Stainless Steel Metallurgy: A Course for Non-Metallurgists”. It will be given by Thomas Ladwein and Jan-Olaf Nilsson, two experts in providing ‘the basics’ to those new to the industry. So if you have staff who would like, or urgently need, to find out more about stainless steels then here is their opportunity to do so.
For 125 Euros per person, it will be money well spent so don’t forget to fill in the form on page 49 and return it to us to sign someone up.
Naturally, there is far more to this June edition of Stainless Steel World than just a quiz. James Chater takes time to look at the UK economy and the prospects of stainless steel for the future there. On another front, as the beginning of a new feature series in which we will place more emphasis on what is happening with regard to the wire and mesh industry, we examine the role of the company Gebr. Kufferath’s use of spiral mesh in Madrid’s new architectural masterpiece ‘La Caja Magica’.
This month’s special theme is Offshore and Duplex so we delve into how the oil & gas business is holding up not only during this period of recession but how, when the anticipated revival comes, we expect to see an increased demand in the supply of duplex and (super)austenitic grades that can withstand the high pressures, extreme temperatures, and corrosion needed for deepwater installations. Other topics on duplex this month relate to a revisit to George Furmanski at CalEnergy Imperial Valley headquarters for an update on an intriguing application of super duplex stainless steel in a uniquely corrosive environment. Nearer to our own European headquarters A. Elhoud et al. report on “Inter-Metallic Observations using a Backscattering Technique on 25Cr Super Duplex Stainless Steel Alloy”. Further, we report on ACHEMA, and the Shanghai Tube & China Pipe Fitting Expo. Joanne McIntyre, our new reporter, brings us an update on the 13th Annual Industrial Maintenance Trade show in Rotterdam and we have two end-user interviews: one with Thierry Cassagne of Total who tells us “Why Communication is Important” and the other with Olav Nybråten of StatoilHydro in Norway who gives us his views on “Functionality and Lifecycle Remaining the Key to Materials Selection” . Again a wide range of topics and something for everyone, we hope.
Very best wishes,
John Butterfield
Editor-in-Chief of Stainless Steel World
j.butterfield@kci-world.com
Like all good quizzes. Here are the answers:
(1) A small amount of sulphur improves the machinability of stainless steels.
(2) The removal of high-temperature oxide from the surface of stainless steels, which has been formed during processes such as welding and hot working. It is removed by the use of mixtures of strong acids such as nitric and hydrochloric acids. If not carried out the high-temperature oxides will reduce the corrosion resistance of the steels.
(3) It is the attack of metals by notably chloride ions.
(4) A type of stainless steel whose composition is 50% ferrite/50% austenite, which leads to it having a higher strength than either structure by itself.
(5) A term meaning the heat treatment of steels. It usually refers to a softening process.
(6) A group of stainless steels in which manganese has been substituted for nickel to provide the characteristic austenitic structure.