1. Production Process
SUS430 (1Cr17 / 1.4016) is a ferritic stainless steel with ~16.0%–18.0% chromium, low carbon and negligible nickel. Its production is divided into hot rolled coil and cold rolled coil production routes.
1.1 Smelting & Continuous Casting (Slab Making)
●Steelmaking: Raw scrap steel & hot metal are melted in EAF, followed by decarburization and chromium protection in AOD furnace; component fine-tuning via LF refining to strictly control C, N and S to avoid intergranular corrosion.
●Continuous Casting: Casting temperature 1520–1540℃, casting speed 1.0–1.25 m/min with electromagnetic stirring. Cast slabs go through surface grinding to eliminate subsurface blowholes and cracks.
1.2 Hot Rolled Coil Production (3.0~14 mm, No.1 black / pickled white finish)
●Slab reheating: Soaked at 1120–1200℃ for 120–180 min for uniform ductility.
●Rough rolling + Finish rolling: Large reduction in roughing; finishing entry temp 950–1050℃, finish rolling exit 850–900℃ to form hot rolled coils.
●Annealing & Pickling: Batch/continuous annealing at 780–860℃, shot blasting + mixed acid pickling to remove scale for 2D pickled hot rolled coils.
●Slitting, coiling and warehousing.
1.3 Cold Rolled Coil Production (0.1~3.0 mm finished coil: 2B / BA / HL finish, mainstream commercial grade)
●Raw material: pickled hot rolled coils → degreasing to remove rolling oil
●Multi-pass cold rolling on 20-high precision mill to produce hard rolled coils with work hardening.
●Continuous annealing at 820–860℃ to release forming stress, refine grain and restore ductility.
●Electrolytic pickling & passivation to remove annealing oxide and form dense passive film.
●Skin-pass rolling to improve flatness and eliminate yield lines.
●Custom surface finishing as required:
2B: matte silver general finish (stock standard)
BA: bright mirror finish for high-end appliance panels
HL hairline finish for kitchen & construction decoration; No.4 short hairline & customized mirror polishing available
●Slitting, recoiling and final packaging.
2. Product Characteristics
Advantages
●Cost-effective: Nickel-free, around 60%–70% cost of 304 stainless steel for mass production cost control.
●Physical performance:
High thermal conductivity (~26 W/(m·K), nearly double of 304), ideal for heating & heat dissipation parts;
Low thermal expansion coefficient (10.4×10⁻⁶/℃), minimal thermal deformation and welding distortion vs austenitic grades;
Good oxidation resistance up to 650℃ for high-temperature exhaust & burner components.
●Fabrication performance:
Ferromagnetic, easy magnetic sorting & recycling;
Excellent bending, shallow stamping, shearing & drilling with lower springback than 304; superior machinability for automatic lathe processing;
Polishable to mirror or hairline finish for direct decorative usage without painting.
Corrosion resistance: Good resistance against atmospheric corrosion, tap water, indoor oil stain and weak acid/alkali, rust-free for indoor & dry mild outdoor environments.
Typical Mechanical Properties (annealed 2B finish)
Tensile strength ≥450 MPa, Yield strength ≥205 MPa, Elongation ≥22%, HRB ≤88.
3. Main Applications
3.1 Home Appliance (Largest consumption field)
Refrigerator cabinet & inner liner, washing machine panel & inner tub, range hood faceplate, gas cooker surface, microwave housing, oven baking tray, air conditioner fin, water heater shell; BA bright coil for premium appliance panels.
3.2 Kitchenware & Hardware
Cooker outer casing, barbecue mesh, cutlery, cabinet panel, bathroom fittings, door hardware, storage rack, sink facing for non-acidic working conditions.
3.3 Construction & Decoration
Elevator cabin interior, door frame, skirting board, indoor ceiling, decorative moulding, louver, indoor guardrail, decorative roof tile (dry ambient); HL hairline coil is dominant decorative material.
3.4 Automotive & Machinery
Automotive interior trim strip, front exhaust pipe, muffler parts, fuel burner nozzle, engine cooling components, common bearings; free-machining grade 430F for automatic lathe bolts & nuts.
3.5 Other Industries
Daily hardware, non-corrosive medical device housing, instrument casing, normal dilute acid storage tank under ambient temperature, electronic heat sink bracket.
4. Common Modified Grades
●430LX: Low-carbon + Ti/Nb stabilized grade, improved welding & deep drawability for hot water tank & geyser inner liner.
●430F: Free-cutting variant for precision shafts and fasteners on automatic lathes.
●Standard 430: General-purpose base grade, most widely stocked commercial material.
