CHAPTER 7

STEEL
 INTRODUCTION

This topic discusses the types and uses of iron steels

and non iron-steels in steel structures.
 THE WORLD FAMOUS STEEL
BUILDINGS

Building A

Building B
Building C
 Introduction
Slides content:
A) Steels
i. Definition
ii. Properties / Characteristics
iii. Types

B) Iron
i. Definition
ii. Properties / Characteristics
iii. Types
 Introduction
Slides content:
C) Comparison between steel & iron
D) Non-steel iron
(copper, aluminium, zinc, brass/bronze)
E) Connection on steel
i) Bolt and nut
ii) Welding
iii) Rivet
 Introduction
Slides content:
F) Corrosion of steel
- Types of protective coating
- Protection of steel
G) Advantages & disadvantages of steel
structural
 STEELS

i) Definition:
- An alloy comprising of
iron and Carbon (a
derivative of iron)
- also known as ‘son of
iron’
- Iron that contain less
than 2% of Carbon High Yield Steel Bar
content
 STEELS
ii) Properties Characteristics
 Stronger & tougher
 Better tension & compression properties
 Widely used in construction and other
applications because of its high tensile
strength
 Low cost
 STEELS
iii) Types of steel
 STEELS
iii) Types of steel
 STEELS
iii) Types of steel
- Add various element (other metals) to steel so
as to produce alloys that have different
properties
- E.g: Chromium is added to steel, stainless steel
is the product which increase the durability &
doesn’t rust easily
- There are four (4) types: Carbon steel, Alloy
steel, Tool steel & Stainless steel
 STEELS
Carbon steel
 Majority of steel produced each day (80-90%)
which primarily contain of carbon
 2 types:
High Carbon steel - > 1% of Carbon like cast iron
(hard & brittle)
Low Carbon steel - < 1% of carbon like wrought iron
(softer & easier to shape)
 E.g: car bodies, warship & engine parts
 STEELS
Alloy steel
 Contain 1 or more other elements such as
chromium, copper, manganese, nickel, silicon or
vanadium
 Its these EXTRA elements that make the
difference & provide some important additional
feature or improved property compared to
ordinary carbon steels
 More stronger, harder, tougher, more durable
THAN carbon steels
 E.g: car rim, jet engine parts
 STEELS
Tool steels
 Hard alloy steels used to make tools & machine
parts
 Made from iron & carbon with added element
such as tungsten to give extra hardness &
resistance to wear
 Also toughened up by process called ‘tempering’
which steel is first heated to a high temperature,
then cooled very quickly, then heated again to a
lower temperature
 E.g: samurai, parang
 STEELS
Stainless steels
 Used in household cutters, scissors, medical
instruments
 Contain a high proportion of chromium and nickel
 A very resistant to corrosion & other chemical
reactions
 Easy to clean, polish & sterilize
 E.g: spoon, knife, medical instruments
 IRON
i) Definition:
 A chemical element

ii) Properties / characteristics:

 It is a strong, hard & heavy gray metal
 Easy to work & shape (soft)
 Excellent electrical & thermal conductor
 Usually found in ore form
 Produced by melting iron ore (mineral
compounds in the Earth’s crust – 5% of the
Earth’s crust is iron) & removing impurities
 IRON
No. Types of iron Figure

1. Pig Iron

2. Cast Iron

3. Wrought Iron
 PIG IRON
 3-4% of Carbon content  Coke – ‘steal’ the oxygen
 Basic raw iron because it’s from the iron oxide
produced in the form of (reduction process) leaving
chunky moulded blocks behind a pure liquid iron
known as pig  Lime stones – to remove the
 Made by heating an iron ore other part of the rocky
(rich in iron oxide) in a blast including clay, sand & small
furnace stones (purification process)
 The iron ore reacts which form a waste slurry
chemically with coke (a known as a slag
carbon rich form of coal) &  Pig iron is much harder than
limestone 100% pure iron but still too
weak for most everyday
purposes
Manufacturing process of pig iron
 CAST IRON
 Contain 3-4% carbon content
 Iron liquid that has been cast; poured into a
mould & allowed to cool & harden to form a
finished structural shape
 Very hard & brittle (can’t reheat to shape)
 Cannot be welded & rolled into sheets
 Do not rust easily
 E.g: lamp post, frying pan, pipes & railing
 WROUGHT IRON
 Low carbon content
 Made by mixing liquid iron with some slag
(resulting an iron alloy with low carbon
content)
 Softer than cast iron and mush less tough (can
reheat to shape)
 Rust more than cast iron
 Can be welded or rolled into sheets
 E.g: gate, grill & staircase handrail
 COMPARISON BETWEEN STEEL AND
IRON
STEEL IRON
• Definition: An alloy where Iron • Definition: A pure element
is the main component • Rusting: Gets oxidized easily to
• Rusting: The alloying elements form rust, and the shine
in Steel protect it from getting doesn’t last long.
rusted; thus, the shine lasts • Properties: not as strong as
longer. Steel and is less brittle.
• Properties: The addition of • Application: used for some
Carbon to Steel makes it applications; however, is not
stronger than Iron. However, it used in finished products and
also tends to make steel structures where a lot of
brittle. strengths is required.
• Application: Most of the uses Therefore, the usage of Iron as
of Iron have been replaced by a pure metal has reached a
Steel as it possesses many limit.
desirable properties.
 NON-STEEL IRON (COPPER)
Appearance/Properties Properties / Uses
 Distinctive reddish orange  Excellent electrical & thermal
conductor
colour
 Excellent corrosion resistance
 Mostly found in ore form (but not recommended for
following exposures:
 Melting point = 1083°C ammonia, nitric acid,
 Boiling point = 2595°C chromate acid, sulfuric acid,
acetic acid)
 Anti microbial (hospital
applications, handrails, door
knobs)
 An abundant element &
recyclable
 NON-STEEL IRON (ZINC)
Appearance/Properties Properties / Uses
 A silver-gray colour  Anti corrosion
 Solid  For medical & treatment
 Melting point = 419.53°C purposes
 Boiling point = 907°C
 NON-STEEL IRON (ALUMINIUM)
Appearance/Properties Properties / Uses
 Silver-gray metallic  Soft, durable, lightweight,
 Solid ductile & malleable metal
 Melting point = 660.32°C  Excellent corrosion
 Boiling point = 2470°C resistance
 For construction industry
purposes (engineering
structures)
 NON-STEEL IRON (BRASS)
Appearance/Properties Properties / Uses
 An alloy of copper & zinc  Highly malleability than zinc or
copper
 Muted yellow, bright gold
 Low melting point (900°C),
like appearance flows when melted
 Corrosion resistant,
susceptible to stress cracking
when exposed to ammonia
 Uses for decorative, low
friction applications (locks,
gears, door knobs, valve),
plumbing, electrical, musical
instruments
 NON-STEEL IRON (BRONZE)
Appearance/Properties Properties / Uses
 An alloy consisting mainly of  Hard & brittle
copper, combined most  Corrosion resistant (esp.
seawater corrosion) & metal
with tin fatigue more than steel
 Reddish brown  Better conductor of heat &
electricity than most steel
 Melting point = 950°C  Used in boat & ship fitting,
propellers & submerged
bearings because of resistance
to salt water corrosion
 Use for cast bronze sculpture,
electrical connectors & springs
 Connection on steel
a) Bolt and nut
 Most common elements in construction &
machine design
 Consist of FASTENERS that capture & join
other parts, and are secured with the mating
of SCREW THREADS
 Connection on steel

Bolted joint in
Screw joint Stud joint
vertical
 Connection on steel
b) Welding
 Uses an electric arc to
generate heat to melt the
parent material in the
joint
 A separate filler material
supplied as a consumable
electrode also melts with
the parent material to
form a molten weld pool
 Connection on steel

 Two most common types of welds are:

i) Fillet Weld
ii) Groove Weld

i) Fillet Weld
Lap joint – fillet weld placed in the corner formed
by two plates)
Tee joint – fillet weld placed at the intersection of
two plates)
ii) Groove Weld
 Deposited in a gap or groove between two parts
to be connected (butt, tee and corner joints
with prepared edges)
 Connection on steel
c) Rivet
 A rivet is a permanent mechanical fastener
 Consist of a smooth cylindrical shaft with a
head on one end, the end opposite to the
head is called the tail
 Placed in a punched or drilled hole
 Types of rivets are:
(e.g: solid/round head rivet, semi tubular rivet,
blind rivet, flush rivet & drive rivet)
Solid Rivet

Flush Rivet
Semi Tubular
Rivet

Blind Rivet
Drive Rivet
 Corrosion of steel
• Corrosion is a process of formation of the
compound of pure metal by the chemical
reaction between metallic surface and its
environment.
• It is an oxidation process. It causes loss of metal.
• ASTM terminology (G 15) defines CORROSION as
“the chemical or electrochemical reaction
between a material, usually a metal, and its
environment that PRODUCES a deterioration of
the material and its properties”.
 Corrosion of steel
There are several different types of corrosion
that can occur on steel and metal building
components:
i) Basic Corrosion
ii) Bimetallic Corrosion
iii) Environmental Corrosion
 Corrosion of steel
i) Basic corrosion
 First, the iron (Fe) atoms that comprise steel lose some
electrons and become positively charged (+ve).
Positively charged ions attract negatively charged ions.
 Second, water (H2O) and oxygen (O), mix together and
become even more negatively charged (-ve), thus
attracting themselves to the positively-charged iron
atoms mentioned above. The result is a chemical called
iron hydroxide (4Fe(OH)2).
 Iron hydroxide continues to react with oxygen, yielding
2Fe2O3.H2O - also known as hydrated iron oxide OR
brown rust.
Corrosion of steel
 Corrosion of steel
ii) Bimetallic Corrosion
 occurs when a chemical reaction is caused by
two metals coming in contact - or close
contact - with one another.
 occurs most frequently in steel structures that
are submerged or buried.
 Corrosion of steel
iii) Environmental Corrosion
 Certain environmental pollutants, toxins and
compounds can exacerbate (to make something
worse) either one of the above forms of corrosion
 Buildings most susceptible to environmental
corrosion are those in an industrial or
manufacturing areas where off-gassing and toxic
emissions are higher than normal, as well as
buildings located in coastal environments,
exposed to higher levels of salinity.
 Types of Protective Coating
• Protective coatings are commonly referred to
by their generic resin type, such as acrylic,
epoxy or polyurethane.
• In addition, they may be referred to by the
type of resin and the curing agent used, such
as epoxy amine, where an amine is used as
the cure.
• A coating must exhibit a variety of properties
to fulfil its role as a protective coating.
 Coating Properties
 Chemical Resistance: The  Adhesion to Substrate:
coating must resist Adhesion is based on physical
breakdown from the and chemical interactions
chemicals to which it is between the coating and the
exposed. Chemical resistance substrate. Poor adhesion
is primarily a function of the equates to poor performance.
resin used.
 Ease of Application: Ease of
 Water Resistance: Water application is a vital
affects virtually all coatings. characteristic, especially with
Greater water resistance intricate structural details.
equates to more effective The more difficult the
corrosion control. application, the more
opportunity for defects to be
created, leading to premature
failure.
 Coating Properties
 Cohesive Strength: Coatings must be able to withstand
the stresses of the curing process and changes in
temperature and moisture content.
 Flexibility and Elongation: The ability to expand and
contract with the substrate is critical in some coating
applications.
 Impact Resistance: The coating may have to resist
impact loads.
 Abrasion Resistance: Coatings in some areas may have
to be abrasion-resistant.
 Temperature Resistance: The environment may expose
the coating to extremes of temperature, usually
elevated.
 Advantages & Disadvantages of Steel
Advantages Disadvantages
 Lightness  Susceptibility to corrosion
 High strength and stiffness  Low fire resistance
per weight  Buckling and high
 Ease of fabrication and deformation due to small
mass production sizes of members
 Fast and easy erection and
installation
 Substantial elimination of
delays due to weather
 Formwork unneeded