Tag Archives: Steel

How is Steel Made? The Process Explained

Steel Columns and beams of 1 World Trade Center
Steel columns and beams of One World Trade Center Under Construction. 3/5/2010. Photo: © SMS

Walk down any city construction site, and you’ll see a network of steel beams and columns rising from the ground. Why are they using steel? Because steel is strong, durable, and easy to work with. It is the iron alloy of choice for building construction. 

If you’re wondering how steel is manufactured, look no further! This blog post will explain the process from start to finish. 

History of Steel

The emergence of steel can be traced back to the Iron Age when it was used to make swords. History experts say that the original creators of steel were the Hittites. This Middle Eastern civilization existed during the Bronze Age and later into the Iron Age, between 1400 and 1200 B.C., in Syria and Turkey. They learned that heating iron with carbon could make a stronger metallic substance.

Illustration of blacksmith forging steel
Image by Lutz Krüger from Pixabay

Historians are not exactly sure what happened to the Hittites, but the consensus is that they most likely morphed into the Neo-Assyrian Empire (912 to 612 BC).

It has also been discovered that China first worked with steel around 403–221 BC. The Han dynasty (202 BBC—AD220) melted wrought iron with cast iron, producing a steel composite.

Modern Day Uses

With the advent of the railroad construction boom in the 19th century and its ongoing requirement for metal to make the tracks, a supply issue materialized. The process was slow and tedious since there wasn’t an automatic process to fill the need.

Enter the Steel Mill

Steel mills provided the raw materials for many of the world’s most essential products. Since the first mill opened in the early 1800s, they were constantly improved and adapted to meet the needs of the times.

Bethlehem Steel producing 6" guns
6″ guns are being produced by Bethlehem Steel. Photo: Wikimedia Public Domain, circa 1905

These manufacturing plants have helped build skyscrapers, bridges, and countless other structures. They have also been instrumental in developing new technologies, solving railway construction issues, and building assembly lines for other products.

No time was more profitable for the steel mill than during the Industrial Revolution, which began in the nineteenth century and continued until the mid-twentieth century.

And there wasn’t a company more notable for achieving the country’s manufacturing demand than Bethlehem Steel, which provided the product for 125 years, starting in 1887.

Enter the Skyscraper

Before steel was invented, the average office or apartment building would not reach more than five stories. Still, steel provided enormous strength and durability and, as such, allowed the construction of buildings taller and stronger than ever before.

How Steel is Made

Steel does not grow out of thin air. It begins with mining iron ore, which is then combined with carbon via a blast furnace. Let’s get more involved in understanding how this process works.

Mining the Iron Mineral

Photo of iron ore
Photo of an iron ore. iStock

An ore is a natural substance found in the Earth’s service where the iron mineral can be extracted. Once the ore is removed from the quarry, it is melted and purified in a blast furnace (removing impurities and leaving only the metal).

Enter Carbon

Carbon is an element in the Periodic Table with an atomic number of 6, with four electrons in its outer shell and two in its inner shell.

Atoms with less than eight electrons in their outer shell (called the valence shell) tend to look for other atoms to bond with so that their outer shells can stabilize the atom by balancing the shell to eight electrons. This is based on the Octet Rule.

Illustration of the carbon atom
Bohr Illustration of the Carbon Atom. Photo: Photo by dacurrier on Pixabay

Iron has eight electrons in its valence shell, so if you bond the carbon atom, which has six valence electrons, with the iron atom, you have a molecule of two different atoms, which forms steel.

It is essential to ensure that the correct amount of carbon, approximately 0.04%, is used with iron so that the resultant product is steel.

If the wrong amount of carbon is mixed with iron, a different product will be produced, such as cast iron or wrought iron—both are inefficient in rendering steel.

Combining the Carbon with Iron Creates a Stronger Material

For steel, the two elements are combined while the iron metal is liquid hot, which alters the iron’s properties to that of steel. As a result, steel becomes an alloy (a metal made by combining two or more metallic elements) of iron and carbon. 

This causes a distortion of iron’s crystalline lattice structure and subsequently enhances the metal’s strength; specifically, it increases the metal’s tension and compression properties. 

The Manufacturing Process

Rows of steel pipes
Roll of galvanized steel sheet at metalworking factory. Photo: iStock

A breakthrough for manufacturing steel via an automated process materialized in 1856 when Henry Bessemer found a way to manufacture steel quickly. Bessemer’s steel production process is what inspired the Industrial Revolution

It was the first cost-efficient industrial process for the large-scale production of steel from molten pig iron, using an air blast to remove impurities. 

Adding Carbon Produces a Variety of Iron Alloys

As previously mentioned, iron’s characteristics change when mixed with carbon, allowing various types of metal alloys to be created. The amount of carbon added to iron changes its characteristics accordingly. 

Cast Iron

Cast iron buildings NYC
Cast iron buildings, Lower Manhattan. Photo: © SMS

Cast iron is an alloy of iron that contains 2 to 4 percent carbon, along with smaller amounts of other elements, such as silicon, manganese, and minor traces of sulfur and phosphorus. These minerals are nonmetallic and are referred to in the industry as slag. Cast iron can be easily molded into a desired shape, known as casting, and has been used to make decorative fences and other aesthetic forms.

Cast iron facades were invented in America in the mid-1800s and were produced quickly, requiring much less time and resources than stone or brick. They were also very efficient for decorative purposes, as the same molds were used for many buildings, and a broken piece could be quickly remolded. Because iron is powerful, large windows were utilized, allowing a lot of light into buildings and high ceilings that required only columns for support.

Wrought Iron

Wrought iron fence. Palermo Italy
Wrought iron fence. Palermo Italy.
Photo: © SMS

Wrought iron is softer than cast iron and contains less than 0.1 percent carbon and 1 or 2 percent slag.

It was an advancement over bronze and began to replace bronze in Asia Minor by the 2nd century BC. Because iron was far more plentiful as a natural resource, wrought iron was used for various implements, weapons, and armor.

Steel


Steel is an alloy made from iron that usually contains several tenths of a percent of carbon, which increases its strength and durability over the other forms of iron, especially in tensile strength.

Strictly speaking, steel is just another iron alloy, but it has a much lower carbon content than cast iron and about as much carbon (or sometimes slightly more) than working iron, with other metals frequently added to give it additional properties. 

Most of the steel produced today is called carbon steel, or simple carbon, although it can contain metals other than iron and carbon, like silicon and manganese. 

Stainless Steel

The steel alloys mentioned above have carbon integrated within them, but stainless steel uses chromium as its alloying element. The result is that each produces a very different result when it comes to corrosion resistance. Stainless steel is much more corrosion-resistant.

Galvanized Steel

Besides incorporating the general benefits of steel, galvanized steel has an added corrosion resistance strength by integrating a zinc-iron coating. The zinc protects the metal by providing a barrier to corrosive environmental elements.

Summary

The advantages of steel are numerous, from great tensile and compression strength to the speed of manufacturing to low cost; it is the metal of choice in construction when compared to iron.

 Although iron and steel appear similar, they are two distinct materials with specific characteristics and qualities. Iron is a pure mineral, and steel is an alloy material that contains a percentage of carbon.  Different products emerge depending on the amount of carbon mixed with iron, including steel creation. 

Steel is a far stronger material, and there is no better metal currently used when strength and cost are major factors.

 

7 Buildings that Use Cantilever Architecture

Citicorp Tower cantilevers
Citicorp Tower. Photo: Wikimedia CC

In the 19th century, with the advent of structural steel, engineers began using cantilevers to construct taller buildings. This type of architecture is primarily used when there isn’t enough space on one side of a structure for its foundation. Engineers have to build the foundation out from one side and then use beams that extend from it to support the weight. 

This construction style is eye-catching and certainly more daring than other methods of building. It also requires serious engineering skills, as well as a detailed understanding of how much weight the beams can bear without giving way. Indeed, the correct structural engineering is imperative as just a small miscalculation in the production of steel and concrete can result in catastrophe.

‍If you live in a big city, you might have noticed that more buildings are being built with these overhangs. This is especially true for cities where space is at a premium, such as New York City.  In this article, we are going to take office building construction to a whole new level – the use of cantilevers!

The Citicorp Center, New York City

Citicorp Tower looking up
Citicorp Tower, NYC. Photo: Wikimedia CC

​If there was ever a building that emphasized cantilever design it would be the Citicorp Center in midtown Manhattan. Completed in 1977, the 59-story, 915-foot-high skyscraper sits on three stilts with an internal core at the center.

The building is structurally sound now; however, thanks to an observant doctoral student at Princeton University, a discrepancy was discovered when wind forces hit particular angles of the building.

In 1978, Diane Hartley, who was writing a structural engineering thesis, found that the engineer’s calculations did not match hers, which was disturbing since it indicated a possibly dangerous situation.

Should a strong wind ​happen to hit the building’s corners, the possibility of the building toppling over had a chance of collapse. It was a one-in-16 chance, but the danger still existed.

Hartly proceeded to notify William LeMessurier, who was the chief structural engineer. He checked her math and realized she was correct.

Quietly, LeMessurier proceeded to correct the issue. In coordination with the NYP​​D, an evacuation plan was enacted, which covered a ten-block radius. An evacuation almost materialized as a hurricane was forecast to be heading towards NYC. Hurricane Ella was on its way but moved away from the city at the eleventh hour.

Interestingly enough, word did not get out about this until 1995 when it was published in the New Yorker Magazine.

In addition to the skyscraper’s unusual cantilevered design, the developers used their ingenuity to build a large solar panel at the top of the structure; hence, the slanted roof at the top points south. But the idea never materialized, the slanted roof remains as an esthetic addition to the building.

The Rotterdam Tower

De_Rotterdam Tower showing cantilevered construction
Photo: Wikipedia-CC

This intriguing building is located in the Netherlands and is part of the Erasmus Bridge Complex. It is a mixed-use building that houses offices, a hotel, and apartments. The building has a cantilever design, which is why the residents can enjoy a gorgeous view of the river

The architects designed the building so that it extends out over the river and almost touches the bridge. They also designed it so that it is taller on one side. The weight of this building is distributed between its central core and its cantilever, which is why it can be so tall without the ground beneath it being affected.

Statoil Regional and International Offices

Statoil is an energy producer in Norway and the 57th largest company in the world. Norwegian architects A-Lab designed a 117,000-square-meter commercial building complex that fits into the picturesque shoreline of Fornebu in perfect harmony.

Additionally, this architectural expression injects new energy into the nearby park and commercial area and was a key challenge in their design. Of course, it is the overhangs that make the building stand out. They stretch up to 100 feet in many directions.

Marina Bay Sands Hotel

The Marina Bay Sands Hotel is considered one of the most impressive hotels in the world. It is a massive construction project that began in 2003 and was completed in 2011. The project was a collaboration between the Las Vegas Sands Corporation and the Singapore government and was built on the site of a former shipyard. The hotel has three 55-story towers. but in addition to these buildings, it has a sky park that is cantilevered over all three towers.

Designed by Israeli architect Moshe Safdie,  the hotel has 2,500 rooms and a lobby that crosses the entire three buildings just like the sky park above.

Marina Bay Sands Hotel Sinagpore

Marina Bay Sands Hotel by architect Moshe Safdie. Photo by Julien de Salaberry on Unsplash

Building the Hotel

One of the most interesting aspects of the construction of the hotel was that developers used an unusual design that allowed them to build upwards while keeping the foundations stable.

This was necessary because Singapore is located on a floodplain, and it is impossible to build foundations below ground level, so the engineers designed the foundation so that the bottom of the hotel would be constructed on a metal mesh, which would be anchored to the ground. The mesh would keep the foundation stable while allowing sand and water to flow freely through it. The foundation is built in modular sections, which can be raised and lowered as necessary. The builders also used a system of shuttles to transport construction materials to the upper floors of the hotel, as well as the rooftop.

Lessons Learned from MBS’s Construction

As we have seen, the construction of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel was a challenge. It is rare for the ground to shift so dramatically in an area where there is no flooding, and it is even more unusual for builders to build on top of a metal foundation. Although this construction project was unique, it still provided some important lessons for other builders.

The first is that challenges are an inevitable part of construction, and there are always several factors that have to be taken into account. The second is that challenges should not be seen as a reason to abandon the project. When building on the water, the builders of the Marina Bay Sands had to be flexible, and ready to make adjustments at any time. If they had been too rigid, they may not have been able to proceed with the project at all.

One Vanderbilt – New York City

Vanderbilt Office Building under construction
Vanderbilt Office Building under construction. Photo: ©SMS

With space so much at a premium in this city, the only way to build is up, and even then, it might not be enough to encompass the amount of office space that the developers envisioned for the Vanderbilt Tower.

Located across from Grand Central Terminal, it is the fourth tallest building in NYC, rising 1,401 feet above the ground. On the south and west sides, it is cantilevered over Vanderbilt Ave. and 42nd Street respectively, and this overhang starts at only approximately 50 feet up and then supports the rest of the superstructure. There is an observatory at the top, which is the 5th observatory in Manhattan. 

Other skyscrapers with noticeable cantilevered construction in New York include Central Park Tower and the Citicorp Headquarters, displayed above. 

J. P. Morgan Chase Headquarters – New York City

Steel Cantilever at Chase Bank Headquarters
Steel Cantilever at Chase Bank Headquarters Under Construction. Photo: ©SMS
JP Morgan Chase headquarters
JP Morgan Chase headquarters Full View May 21, 2023. Photo: © SMS

Also known as 270 Park Ave., this 1,388-foot-tall, 70-story, 2.5 million-square-foot super tower is located between Park and Madison Avenues, and 47th and 48th Streets.

This massive building will be supported, in part by steel cantilever columns that protrude diagonally out on the eastern and western sides of the building.

Interestingly, the building is replacing the former Union Carbide 52-story tower (later bought by Chase) that was previously there. The building was completely demolished, which made it the largest intentionally demolished building in the world.

The new Chase headquarters will have zero carbon emissions and will be 100% powered by New York hydropower in upstate NY, which produces electricity completely from flowing water.

No doubt, this will be one of New York’s most advanced skyscrapers.

Frank Gehry’s Chiat/Day Building

Binoculars Building, Los Angeles
Binoculars Building, Los Angeles, CA. Photo: Wikimedia CC

This building is a former office building in Los Angeles, California that was converted into a mixed-use building. It is now home to a variety of businesses, as well as the famous advertising agency Chiat/Day.

Designed by notable architect Frank Gehry, this building with a cantilever on one side so that it could house all of the businesses. They designed the cantilever so that it wouldn’t cause damage to the building’s foundations.

The building’s cantilever also allowed designers to create an interesting façade. They were able to extend the second floor out so that it creates a terrace, which is accessible from the sidewalk.

Summing Up

The cantilever is an interesting architectural feature that many people likely do not think about as they walk under these overhangs, but it is a complex engineering solution that isn’t suitable for every project; however, in these examples, it works brilliantly.

While they may be pretty to look at, they also serve a critical function, which makes them a necessity. While the specific structural design of each cantilever will vary depending on the building type, design, and geographic location, the overall concept is the same.

 

 

What is Iron?

What is Iron?

Iron ore in rock form
Iron ore on a rocky base

Did you know that iron is a healthy nutrient for our bodies as well as the main ingredient in the manufacture of steel?

Before we venture into the types of iron, let’s first examine its properties. Iron is a mineral with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26.

On the periodic table, it belongs to the first transition series, which reflects a change in the inner layer of electrons, but we’ll leave that for the chemists since the chemical compound of this mineral is beyond the scope of this article.

Iron is the most common element on Earth when referenced by mass and is very prominently found in the Earth’s outer and inner cores. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth’s crust, but the process to extract it requires kilns or furnaces capable of reaching a temperature of 2,730 °F or higher.

A Little Bit of Iron History

Bronz Statue
Bronze Statue
Wikipedia_Public Domain

Durint the Bronze Age (c. 3300–1200 BC) it was the metal of choice to create art, tools, and weapons. It was the first time metals were used for these purposes. Prior to this period, stone was used as a tool and for weapons; hence, the Stone Age.

Interestingly enough, the Bronze Age also brought us the first writing system and the invention of the wheel. An intriguing period of creative thought for sure.

Enter Iron

Say goodbye to bronze and hello to iron; hence, the Iron Age, which started around 1200 BC. It should be noted that before the Iron Age was coined, there were occasions when iron was found to be used much earlier.

One historical account was that of the ancient Egyptians. Archeologists found iron beads made from meteorites dating back to 3200 B.C.  Iron is abundant in outer space. But these incidences were rare until the time when iron became the metal of choice.

Iron for Infrastructure

Steel Columns and beams of 1 World Trade Center
Steel  (an alloy of iron) columns and beams of One World Trade Center Under Construction. Photo: SS

Once we entered the 19th century, new uses for iron materialized. It was discovered that this mineral, when mixed with carbon, can be used for building purposes, and with the advent of the industrial revolution, where items were being mass-produced, the manufacture of iron became an economical commodity. 

Building Construction

Iron in its pure form, it is not used for building construction since it would not have the tensile or compressive strength required for infrastructure, but when other elements are added to it, such as carbon, it can become a desirable metal.

Bridges and buildings are just two of the common uses of iron alloys, since their tensile and compression strengths are bolstered. Let’s take a look at the iron alloys.

Cast Iron

Cast iron buildings NYC
Cast iron buildings, Lower Manhattan. Photo: SS

Cast iron has 2% to 4% of carbon mixed in with it along with some small amounts of impurities, such as sulfur and phosphorus.

This alloy has an advantage as it is simple to cast (mold).

A good example of the use of cast iron can be found in the SoHo and nearby areas of New York City. There are about 250 cast iron buildings located there. The initial purpose of cast iron facades was to improve older buildings, but they were eventually used in newer construction as well. 

Cast Iron’s Disadvantage

Because of iron’s brittleness (subject to fractures under stress) and relatively low tensile (ability to stretch) strength, cast iron is not a suitable material for products that require a high degree of tension or bending moments.

Cast Iron’s Advantage

Although tension is not a good quality of cast iron, it does have acceptable compressive strength (ability to sustain heavy loads) and it is also durable (ability to withstand wear).

Construction of bridges and buildings using cast iron was very popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In fact, there is a whole section in New York City that is called the Cast Iron District, also known as SOHO.

Later in the mid-20th century and on to today’s building construction techniques, cast iron gave way to steel because of the fact that steel has high tension capabilities as well as high compression.

Wrought Iron 

Cast iron fence. Palermo Italy
Wrought iron fence. Palermo Italy. Photo SS.

Wrought iron is not an iron alloy. It is made entirely of iron with no  carbon additions. Wrought iron is malleable, ductile, and corrosion-resistant

This metal is different from cast iron and because of its malleability. it was given the name wrought since it could be hammered into shape while it remained hot. Wrought iron is a prerequisite to mild steel, also called low-carbon steel, and is considered the first of the steel alloys.

As a matter of fact, the element was initially refined into steel. In the 1860s, ironclad warships and railways were built with these iron alloys.

Wrought iron was eventually halted to make way for the less expensive and stronger steel, as steel’s advantage over wrought iron and cast iron is its ability to absorb shocks without breaking.

Steel

Steel Cantilever at Chase Bank Headquarters
Steel Cantilever at Chase Bank Headquarters Under Construction. Photo: SS

Steel is an iron alloy that contains a low amount of carbon, roughly 0.40%; however, that is enough to change iron’s characteristics, and with the advent of the Bessemer process, making steel became less costly to create. 

Steel has good tension and compression factors, as well as being impact resistant. Steel is so strong that it is used to cantilever skyscrapers. This is why you see so many buildings under construction today that have steel as their framework.

Iron for Nutrition

Red Blood Cells
“Red blood cells” by rpongsaj is licensed under CC BY 2.0

Since iron is a mineral, it is also an important nutrient for our bodies. If you have an iron deficiency, you may possibly acquire anemia and also fatigue.

So how much iron do you need on a daily basis? For most people, an adequate amount of iron is consumed daily via the foods that we eat, but to determine your specific iron needs, you can see a chart and information here. One person told us that he eats yogurt and raisins every day. Raisins contain a certain amount of iron. 

Do you know why our blood is red?  It is because there is an interaction between iron and oxygen within the blood creating a red color. Learn more about red blood cells and iron here.

To be sure you have enough iron in your body, check with your doctor to confirm you are not deficient.

Conclusion

Besides being an essential component for healthy blood in our bodies, iron became an essential component for weapons and later, building materials.

There are differences between cast iron and wrought iron besides their carbon content. Cast iron is created using the casting method, where a liquid metal is poured into a mold, while wrought iron is made by use of heating and bending.

Numerous bridges and buildings have been constructed during the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries using iron, but as the industrial revolution advanced and the making of materials became automated, new alloys of iron were created, specifically, steel and along with concrete, led to the construction of stronger buildings, bridges, and skyscrapers we see today all over the world.