RINL Kid's Corner

What is the chemical symbol for iron?

The chemical symbol for iron is Fe [as in ferrous].

What is the [approx] density of steel?

The density of steel depends a little on the alloy content, but for most steels the density is in the ~7.8-8.0 tonnes per cubic meter range.

What is the approx. melting point of carbon steel?

The melting point of commodity grade carbon steel is around 1500-1550 Celsius.

How much steel is there in a typical family car?

We consider that an average family car contains around 830 kg of steel, with iron making up a further ~130kg and aluminium and other metals [mostly magnesium, copper and zinc] making up a further 125kg. The steel itself in the typical light passenger vehicle is mostly flat products (~77% of the total) rather than long products.

In the year 2013 world crude steel production was

The World Steel Association reports 2013 world crude steel production at 1606mt (2011 output was 1559mt).

In blast furnace operations, what does PCI stand for?

The answer is pulverized coal injection. The main economic purpose of the fuel injection is for low cost coal to replace higher cost coke. 150kg injected coal per tonne of hot metal represents fair PCI performance; some blast furnaces operate with coal at up to 200 kg/thm.

What is the typical yield improvement in moving from ingot to continuous casting?

Removal of a few centimeters from the end of an ingot to remove imperfections prior to rolling is far more wasteful than removal of a few centimeters off the end of a cast billet or cast slab, as these continuously-cast products have substantially smaller cross-sectional area than does an ingot. Often therefore the yield improvement can be 10% or even more.

What % of global steel production was made by the world's top steelmaker in 2013?

In 2013 ArcelorMittal (the world's largest steelmaker) produced 96mt of crude steel from a world total of 1606mt. This proportion comes to just 6% and compares to ~20% in iron ore mining or ~13% in industries such as primary aluminium smelting. It is this lack of supplier concentration in steel which is frequently referred to in discussions about the high fragmentation of the steel sector and the strong degree of competition within the industry - key arguments for further consolidation according to leading industry figures such as Lakshmi Mittal.

Which is the bigger tube market?

World steel tube demand in 2013 amounted to ~112mt. This comprised welded tube demand of ~72mt and seamless demand of ~40mt.

What % of world steel production is exported [crosses a border before purchase]?

According to the World Steel Association, 2013 world exports of finished steel products were some 409mt from 1.5 billion tonnes, thus ~27% of the total. This proportion was actually much higher a few years ago - at around 35% in 2005, 2006 and 2007.

Which company is the world's largest producer of iron ore?

Our estimates indicate that by iron ore mining capacity in 2013, Vale was the largest potential producer with ~452 million tonnes of annual capacity. Rio followed with ~379 million tonnes / year of iron ore capacity, and BHP Billiton was 3rd with ~310 mt/year.

What is the average level of per capita steel demand [worldwide]?

The world average per capita steel demand according to the World Steel Association is over 200kg [~225 kg / capita based on 2013 steel demand data].

Which country is the world's biggest exporter of scrap?

The USA is the largest exporter of ferrous scrap by far. It exported about 18 million tonnes of scrap in 2013. China exported next to no scrap in 2013. Japan is a medium-sized exporter of scrap like the UK or Germany [scrap exports of ~7 or 8 mt/year each].

What is the approx. all-in capital cost to build an integrated steel plant in the industrialized world today?

The current all-in capital cost of building a greenfield integrated steel mill is around $1000/metric tonne of capacity. A 5 mt/year plant making coke, BOF steel, hot rolled strip and cold rolled / coated steel products would therefore cost around $5 billion to build; but this is an approximate indication only.

The term sequencing refers to the practice of combining batches in the steel production process in order to improve production efficiency in the following step especially ...

Sequencing - the practice of sequence casting - refers to the process of casting two or more heats of the same grade of steel in succession through a continuous caster in order to reduce yield losses.

What is the typical gauge of cold rolled carbon steel coil?

The market is mostly in 0.6mm to 1.2mm range. Thicknesses of 0.18-0.3mm are thin gauge. Above 1.2mm - going up to 2mm - you start to overlap with hot rolled coil.

What is tin foil typically made from?

Tin foil is nowadays mostly made from aluminium. Tin foil is not made from steel and tin is not used in any stage of the manufacturing process.