Steel is a very useful material that is used in a wide variety of applications. Steel is utilized in over 55% of cars. Its flexibility is determined by the kind of alloy elements employed to create it, because these elements impact the strength of the material as well as durability and performance. The method by which the metal is cooled can have significant impact on its microstructure, and consequently, its overall properties. It is also manipulated to achieve specific characteristics like yield strength, machinability and resistance to corrosion.
Steel is iron that has had other elements alloyed to it to enhance its physical properties and make the steel suitable for specific applications. The proportions of these extra alloying elements determine what steel type it belongs to, and thus its overall performance across different applications.
For instance stainless steel is composed of a minimum of 11% chromium, which makes it resistant to corrosion. This makes it perfect for a variety of applications such as cutlery or kitchen utensils. Tool steel, for instance, has an exceptionally high durability and abrasion resistance which makes it a favorite for hand machines and tools. Carbon steels are also suited to a wide range of applications because of their high ductility. Electrical steel is on the other hand is one of the most specialized grades of steel that is composed of silicon (typically about 3%). This improves its magnetic properties, and reduces losses from eddy-current. It is therefore ideal for transformer cores and laminations of electric motors.