Stainless steel has become one of the most favourite items due to its great corrosion resistance. This product is formed by changing the overall composition of various alloying elements. Some common types of stainless steel include martensitic, duplex, ferrous and precipitation-hardened stainless steel. 

Many duplex stainless steel grades are available, such as F51, F53, F55, F61, and many more. Grade F55 in Scotland is generally one of the best stainless steel varieties. In this blog, you will learn interesting facts about this steel grade. 

Everything You Need To Know About Grade F55 Steel

The duplex stainless steel has a two-phase microstructure of ferritic and austenitic steel. The mechanical properties of this steel depend upon the relative amount of ferrite and austenite forming elements available in this mixture. 

What Are The Different Classifications Of Stainless Steel?

The duplex stainless steel is classified into four types, and they include-

  • Duplex
  • Lean duplex
  • Super Duplex
  • Hyper duplex

What Are The Different Properties Of Duplex Stainless Steel?

  • Mechanical strength

This category of steel has high mechanical strength compared to the other types of austenitic and ferritic steel forms. It is formed by using thin sections and helps reduce overall weight. Machining the duplex stainless steel is hard as slow as the austenite due to its mechanical strength. 

  • Corrosion resistance

The duplex stainless steel’s corrosion resistance feature is the same as the higher the austenitic. It is due to the high chromium content mixed with molybdenum that makes it resistant to pit and crevice depletion. Here, the grades are ranked as per the resistance level to pit with the use of the Pitting Resistance Equivalent Number of PREN. 

  • Stress Corrosion Cracking Resistance

Austenitic grades are prone to SCC, whereas ferritic grades have high resistance. Duplex stainless steel has higher SCC resistance than austenitic but less when compared to ferritic grades. SCC begins to an austenitic area in the stainless steel, but it is arrested at the ferritic crystal structure. 

  • Welding

Welding is more process than austenitic. The heat input and cooling rate should be controlled to reduce the build-up of unwanted intermetallic sections. 

The stainless duplex steel has a high strength that will allow the incorporation of a thin gauge used where light fabrications are needed. Even the price of stainless steel varies from one specific commodity to another. 

Lolu Alloys Ltd is one of the leading suppliers of Grade F55 steel in Scotland and local areas. Contact us and scroll the website to learn more about stainless steel products.