Carbon Steel

Carbon steel, an iron-carbon alloy with a carbon content of up to 2.1% of the steel’s total weight, is one of the primary categories of steel. It makes up as much as 90% of steel manufactured globally.

The overarching category of carbon steel can be additionally divided into five sub-categories:

• Ultra-low-carbon steels: carbon content less than 0.015%;
• Extra-low-carbon steels: between 0.015% and 0.05% carbon;
• Low-carbon steels: between 0.05% and 0.19% carbon;
• Medium-carbon steels: between 0.2% and 0.49% carbon;
• High-carbon steels: a carbon content over 0.5%.

These must all contain less than 0.6% copper, 0.6% silicon and 1.65% manganese to meet the requirements as carbon steel. They are each uniquely suitable to various applications and technical specifications.

Carbon steel unites the malleability of iron with the high strength of carbon. While it is brittle at first, carbon steel can be heat-treated into a formable state for the production of custom shapes and plates. It preserves its high toughness and tensile strength during the entire heat treatment processes, but its surface layer will afterwards be susceptible to corrosive elements, such as weathering and oxidization.

The issue of weathering and corrosion can be avoided via a carburization processes designed to harden the exterior of the carbon steel, by promoting carbon migration to the surface of the carbon steel component. The spread of carbon throughout the steel will be distorted, with an elevated carbon density at the exterior and a harder, more iron-dense core in the interior. This gives the finished product a unique combination of a wear-resistant skin with a tough core.

Applications

Due to its high versatility, carbon steel has a broad range of applications and has been employed ubiquitously in a range of industries, especially in the oil, gas, and petrochemical sectors.

As worldwide provider of a variety of steel products, Masteel has obtained and manufactured carbon steel for a wide range of market sectors, with a specialization in the manufacture of low-pressure vessels and industrial boilers for some of the leading fossil fuel energy suppliers in the world.

Carbon steels are often used in the following applications:

• Automotive Components
• Construction
• Cutting Tools
• Machinery
• Structural Shapes
• Train Tracks
• Welding

Benefits

Although a carbon content of 2% might not sound like much, this still provides a number of critical benefits that are not available with other steels. 

High Strength

The first advantage of this additional carbon content is the increased strength of the steel, which significantly reduces the possibility of the steel breaking under pressure.

Versatile

Carbon steel can be used in various applications due to its formability and high tensile strength. These applications range from automotive components to construction materials, tools and more.

Withstands Heat Treatment

Carbon steel can be heat-treated into a formable state, allowing it to be moulded into different shapes and plates. Aside from being formable, the steel still retains its high tensile strength. However, the steel’s surface layer will become susceptible to corrosion after the heat treatment, which includes oxidisation and weathering.