What Is The Melting Point Of Steel?
24 October 2022
As steel is an alloy of many different metals, which comes in many different types, there is no single melting point. Instead, steel’s melting point has a range that spans across its many types. Steel’s melting point is between 1371°C - 1540°.
It is widely accepted that steel is a strong and durable material. However, simply knowing this isn’t enough. Many factors go into deciding if the application of a material is suitable for any given project, such as weight, density, tensile strength and, of course, its melting point.
What Is The Melting Point Of Structural Steel?
We know that steel’s melting point ranges from 1371°C to 1540°C. This range is due to steel being an alloy. There is no set amount of carbon that is added to iron to create steel, and sometimes other alloying elements will be added too, for various reasons. Each added element will lower the overall melting point of the allow, in a process known as “melting point depression”, so structural steel has a lower melting point than many other types of steel, at around 1425°C.
Why Should You Know the Melting Point of Steel?
Melting point is an important property to be aware of because, in the case that a fire occurs, you’ll need to know that the structural elements of your building can still maintain the load whilst weakened by heat. An understanding of the exact temperature at which the structural elements in your building will fail to maintain the load they support is vital for any architect or engineer.
Load-bearing steel will fail below its melting point as its structural integrity becomes too weak to continue holding its capacity. This is why the temperature of failure depends significantly on the load.
When Does The Melting Point Become Important to Know?
If you’re an architect or engineer, the melting point of the materials you’re working with is a crucial property to take into account. It’s vital that you understand the maximum temperature that your steel can withstand before failing. Any steel that is load-bearing will always fail before reaching its melting point.
How to Determine the Melting Point of Stainless Steel
In order to determine the melting point of an alloy, researchers use a determination principle. This is a way of using the change in a material’s light conduction capacity to determine a very precise melting point.
As determining the exact melting point of steel is an in-depth process, it’s not possible for anyone to do it themselves. Much of this data can be found through various trusted sources, including the table below, containing data from the BSSA, detailing the melting points for many common grades of stainless steel.
How Much Heat Can Stainless Steel Take Before Failing?
In order to answer this question, we first need to understand to which stainless steel alloy we’re referring.
Stainless steel may seem like a one-size-fits-all term, but there are actually a variety of different types of stainless steel, all with different amounts of the main alloying elements: iron, carbon and chromium.
Here is our comprehensive list of the melting points for the most common grades of stainless steel, with data from the BSSA:
- Grade 304. 1400-1450°C (2552-2642°F).
- Grade 316. 1375-1400°C (2507-2552°F).
- Grade 430. 1425-1510°C (2597-2750°F).
- Grade 434. 1426-1510°C (2600-2750°F).
- Grade 420. 1450-1510°C (2642-2750°F).
- Grade 410. 1480-1530°C (2696-2786°F).
The key difference between these grades is the amounts of chromium they hold. This has a significantly higher impact on the steel's resistance to corrosion than the melting point.
It’s also important to note that whilst these are the melting points for these grades, steel that is supporting a heavy load can fail at lower temperatures than this.
Find High-Quality Steel from Local Fabricators at Buy A Beam
Buy A Beam have a breadth of experience in helping our customers find local steel fabricators. We provide a vast range of different steel products – from beams and columns to angle bars and box sections. Buy A Beam can connect you with a local steel supplier.