If you work in the steel industry, you understand that there are all sorts of varieties of steel used for a myriad of applications. Because of these varying applications and products, steel’s HARDNESS (as measured on the ROCKWELL SCALE) should fit the needs of the finished product. To find the best fit for the job, steel is generally categorized into four main grades of steel for buyers to purchase. These grades are determined by the overall hardness of the steel and manufacturers can select the grades based on which type of product and application the steel will be used for.
If you are looking for more details, kindly visit prime hot rolled steel coils.
Commercial Steel (CS/CQ)
Typical Rb range 40-65
Commercial Steel represents the most common quality of steel that is mainly used for flat applications. Buyers looking for steel that requires little to no draw or bend would consider commercial steel a good option. Drawability is essentially the formability or structural softness of steel. If you were to think of bending or shaping steel, the harder that steel is (or the higher the Rockwell) the sturdier the steel will be. Many commercial products used in the automotive and furniture industry are manufactured from commercial grade steel.
Drawing Steel (DS) Typical Rb range 35/50
As you’d imagine, drawing steel is regarded as having a higher drawability than commercial grades. Drawing steel is a softer steel that typically contains less than .05 percent carbon. If a customer’s product needed the ability to be moderately bent or shaped in the manufacturing process, then drawing would be a suitable choice.
Deep Drawing Steel (DDS) Typical Rb range 25/40
Deep drawing steel is reserved for fairly severe drawing applications. An example of deep drawing steel would be the softness of an aluminum can and how easily formable it is. The process of deep drawing is to radically draw into a sheet metal blank with a forming die through a fast and hard punch or hit made by a machine. This transforms the shape through material retention. The process is considered “deep drawing” when the depth of the part that’s drawn exceeds its diameter. Deep drawing steel should be used for these deep drawing applications.
Extra Deep Drawing Steel (EDDS) Typical Rb range 15/30
For the last of the four common steel grades, there is extra deep drawing steel. This grade is for really severe drawing applications. EDDS really only allows for the product to be hit with a one or two hit draw. If it is hit more than that, then issues will be had with splitting of the steel. This is why it’s important for customers not to order extra deep drawing steel if they will be sending it through several different hits because it will fail.
How Hascall Steel Determines the Grades
As stated above, the determining factor in identifying steel grades is hardness. Steel’s hardness is measured using the Rockwell scale; and the softer steels are represented by LOWER Rockwell numbers.
Rb’s are not the only determining factor of steel, chemistries, physicals, annealing cycles, etc. all play an important role in making various grades of steel. But a simple Rb test can help guide you in determining what you may need.
When Hascall Steel receives a shipment of steel from our suppliers, our own in-house laboratory accurately tests the mechanical properties to determine both the Rockwell and the tensile, yield, and elongation (TYE). This gives us trustworthy data, and allows us to confirm Rockwell results against our purchase order documents. Having an in-house lab at Hascall Steel is an advantage to us in our pursuit of knowing our material, and accurately matching our inventory to our customers grade requirements.
There are more than 3,500 different types of steel, each with unique physical and chemical properties, according to the World Steel Association. Owing to this extensive assortment, steel finds numerous applications across a broad spectrum of industries.
Hot rolled steel is a widely used type of steel due to its exceptional formability, allowing the manufacture of bars, sheets, tubes and various other components. For use in a wide range of applications, it is available in various grades.
Overview of Hot-Rolled Steel
Want more information on coil manufacturing selection? Feel free to contact us.
Hot-rolled steel is a type of carbon steel that has been heated to its recrystallization point, which is typically around 1,700°F.
The material is then flattened to the required size and thickness using high-speed rollers and shaped into the desired form, such as bars, plates, or sheets. Depending on its carbon content, hot-rolled steel can be low-carbon (up to 0.3% carbon), medium-carbon (0.3-0.6% carbon), or high-carbon (more than 0.6% carbon).
The treated material displays superior mechanical characteristics at a lesser expense than cold-rolled steel, thereby rendering it a suitable option for various uses, including construction, railway tracks, and sheet metal.
Nonetheless, since the technique may engender textured surfaces and/or material contraction, the material is better suited for applications that do not require exact measurements or stringent surface finishing standards.
The Steel Hot Rolling Process involves several steps.
This process is essential for the manufacture of hot-rolled steel and contributes to the production of high-quality steel products.
Common Hot-Rolled Steel Grades
Hot-rolled steel is available in many grades or standards set by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) or the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM). Some of the most widely used are:
Learn More About Hot-Rolled Steel From CHENXIN Steel
Want to learn more about hot-rolled steel? Ask the experts at CHENXIN Steel. Our products find application in a diverse range of markets, where they serve as ideal alternatives to forged, cast, extruded, cold drawn, and machined steel components. For additional information on hot-rolled steel and the various grades available, contact us today.
For more information, please visit wire rod for wire rope manufacturing.