Student : Hello Mr Jefferson.
Mr Jefferson : Hello, fellow student. Do you need anything?
Student : I was going to ask you if you could test my knowledge to get prepared for the science test
This Friday about the different types of steel.
Mr Jefferson : Alright then, I’ll ask you a few questions about steel.
Student : Thanks Mr Jefferson. Let’s start now.
Mr Jefferson : Alright. Question Number 1, What substances are added to iron to form the different
types of steel, and how much of that substance is added?
Student : To make steel, you are required to add substances such as manganese, chromium,
nickel, tungsten, molybdenum, and vanadium to iron. Most steel contain a really
small amount of carbon.
Mr Jefferson : Nice one. Now let’s move on to the next question. Question 2, What are the
properties of these different types of steel?
Student : They’re strong, tough, ductile and malleable.
Mr Jefferson : Alright, time for question 3, What are these different types of steel used for?
Student : They can be used to make gears, shafts, connecting rods and seamless tubes.
The types of steel that have more carbon in them can be used to make springs,
Knives, hand tools, taps and milling cutters.
Mr Jefferson : Now, for question 4, Where are these different types of steel made?
Student : They are made in a steel mill. In a steel mill, steel is cast by a continuous caster
into raw building material. Steel is primarily produced using one of two methods :
Blast Furnace or Electric Arc Furnace.
Mr Jefferson : On to question 5, Where does the iron, carbon and other metals needed to
make steel come from? Do they have to be extracted or treated in some way
before they can be used?
Student : Iron, Manganese, Chromite, Nickel, Tungsten, Molybdenum and Vanadium are all
obtainable by mining, smelting and processing, Chromium can primarily be
obtained through heating the mineral chromite, in the presence of aluminium or
silicon.
Mr Jefferson : Alright, nice one. There are still 3 more questions to be answered, so let’s
continue. Question 6, In retrospect to question 5, What does this mean in
terms of the cost of manufacture?
Student : Steel is pretty cheap to make, and 1 ton of steel averages to about the price of
$700. ( That’s in US Dollar by the way )
Mr Jefferson : Question 6, Where does the steel get used?
Student : Steel is used in every aspect of our lives, in Cars and Construction Products,
Refrigerators and Washing Machines, Cargo Ships, Surgical Scalpels and in
Flatware.
Mr Jefferson : Question 8, What does this mean in terms of transport costs?
Student : Since steel is such a heavy material, it tends to have higher shipping costs since
shipping costs are largely based on weight.
Mr Jefferson : Alright, nice job, you’ve answered all the questions correctly. I
recommend finding out about other specialist steels, just in case for some reason I
decide to put in into the exam.
Student : Actually, I’ve done a little research on that subject. I’ve found out about a type of
steel called Electrical Steel, that happens to be made out of an alloy of Iron and
Silicon. Electrical Steels are used in the core of Electromagnetic devices such as
Motors, Generators, and Transformers, because of the ability of ferromagnetic
materials to magnify the magnetic effects of current carrying coils.