This article is a brief description of all the features of steel 20X13: characteristics, application, properties, substitutes and foreign analogues. This article will be useful to those who want to quickly get acquainted with the most important information on this topic without wasting time in vain.
Steel decryption
So, let's start with the simplest. Deciphering steel grades correctly is a very useful skill that you cannot do without if you often have to work with various alloys.
Since the Soviet system of naming and GOSTs is still used in domestic metallurgy, absolutely any grade of steel is deciphered approximately according to the same principle. Steel 20X13 is decrypted extremely simply:
- The number 20 (or 2 in some cases) denotes the amount of the main alloying element in any steel - carbon.
- The letter X means that at least chromium is present in the alloy.
- The number 13 indicates the percentage of the previous chemical element.
After such a surface analysis, based solely on reading the steel grade, it becomes clear that we have before us technical steel with a carbon content (approximately 0.2%) and chromium (approximately 13%). It is important to note that this information already sufficiently fully allows you to determine the characteristics and application of steel 20X13.
Steel composition
Now consider the most important component of any metal-containing alloy - its composition.
Thanks to official technical documents, anyone can determine with a high degree of accuracy which elements are part of 20X13 steel. Their list is as follows:
- Carbon - 0.2% - an element without which steel cannot exist. It is he who gives the soft iron strength and hardness. However, with this content, the alloy still remains relatively ductile and can be machined, in some cases even without preheating.
- Silicon - 0.6% - an alloying additive that improves the structure of steel and allows it to better tolerate overheating.
- Manganese - 0.6% - the additive is largely similar to the previous one, but manganese not only increases the hardenability of steel, but also increases its viscosity.
- Nickel - 0.6% - again an alloying element that increases the thermal stability of steel, its general ductility and strength.
- Chrome - 13% - is no less important element than the same carbon, because chromium is responsible for the strength of steel, its corrosion resistance, hardenability and conductivity.
At this stage, we can add that 20X13 is heat-resistant steel with exceptional resistance to elevated temperatures, if, of course, compare it with other technical steels. In addition, the alloy is extremely insensitive to corrosion and oxidation due to the high chromium content in the composition.
If you know the characteristics of steel 20X13, the use of this alloy ceases to be a secret. With a high degree of probability, these can be parts operating at high temperatures.
Steel production
However, in its original form, steel is not very suitable for use, therefore, metallurgical plants not only melt the alloy, but also give it a certain shape. Thus, several goals can be achieved at once:
- Molded steel is easier to stock.
- It is much easier to transport.
- Buyers know in advance which form factor of the purchased product is preferable to them.
For steel 20X13, GOSTs provide several molding options:
- Bars of various calibers.
- Steel strip.
- Steel tape.
- Steel sheet of various thicknesses.
- Forging.
- Pipes of various diameters.
- Steel wire.
The use of steel 20X13
This alloy is used primarily for the manufacture of quite ordinary bolts and nuts of various diameters and configurations. In this field, steel 20X13 actively helps its resistance to corrosion. The second field is energy. The rotors of industrial engines, turbine blades and other important components are made of alloy 20X13. The third area of application is the construction of furnaces. Since 20X13 is heat-resistant steel, its use in this process is more than justified, since some other grades of steel simply lose their original properties. But the heat resistance of this steel is not really revealed here. The third, but no less indicative area of application of the characteristics of steel 20X13 is the processing of petroleum products at high temperatures, where the heat resistance of steel is especially useful.
Substitutes
In such a widely demanded area as metallurgy, there can be no interchangeable products of production. For any grade of steel there is a substitute, fully or partially corresponding to the original in terms of its characteristics and composition. For steel 20X13, there are such substitute brands:
- 12X13 - steel with a lower carbon content, which is somewhat offset by a high content of silicon and manganese.
- 14X17H2 is an alloy richer in various additives, characterized by a slightly higher carbon content, additional additives of titanium, copper and nickel. Such a steel grade has better characteristics and, for example, the same steel sheet of this brand will be more preferable for the manufacture of something.
Foreign analogues
The need for metal-containing alloys that are resistant to heat is spreading everywhere, therefore, in different countries on different continents, their own steel production is being established, often very similar in composition to foreign counterparts. For steel 20X13 abroad, there are the following analogues:
- United States of America - 420 and S42000;
- Japan - SUS420J1;
- Europe - X20Cr13;
- China - 2Cr13.
Knowing these names, any person will be able, regardless of their geographical location, to purchase in the nearest store a product made of the desired steel grade.