IRON AND IT’S

TYPES
ASSIGNMENT – 1

SAKSHI SHARMA
B.ARCH 2ND YEAR B SECTION
 IRON

Iron is a chemical element and a metal. It is the most common chemical element on
Earth (by mass), and the most widely used metal. It makes up much of the Earth's core,
and is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust.

The metal is used a lot because it is strong and cheap. Iron is the main ingredient used
to make steel. Raw iron is magnetic (attracted to magnets), and its compound
magnetite is permanently magnetic.

In some regions iron was used around 1200 BCE. That event is considered the
transition from bronze age to iron age.
 PURE IRON

• Pure iron is a common metal but it is mostly confused with other metals such as steel and
wrought iron. All these metals vary in composition. The carbon content of pure iron makes
it unique and different from the other metals and ferrous alloys. The carbon content in pure
iron is always less than 0.008 %. Wrought iron has a higher carbon content of up to 0.5 %.
This shows how less the impurities are in the pure iron.

• Pure iron is silvery white colored metal and is extremely lustrous. Its most important
property is that it is very soft. It is easy to work and shape and it is just soft enough to cut
through (with quite a bit of difficulty) using a knife. Pure iron can be hammered into sheets
and drawn into wires. It conducts heat and electricity and is very easy to magnetize. Its
other properties include easy corrosion in the presence of moist air and high temperatures.
 WROUGHT IRON

Wrought iron is an iron alloy with very low carbon content with respect to cast iron. It is
soft, ductile, magnetic, and has high elasticity and tensile strength. It can be heated and
reheated and worked into various shapes.

Although wrought iron exhibits properties that are not found in other forms of ferrous
metal, it lacks the carbon content necessary for hardening through heat treatment. Wrought
iron may be welded in the same manner as mild steel, but the presence of oxides or
inclusions will provide defective results.

Density 7.7 g/cm3

Melting point 1540°C
Tensile strength234-372 MPa
Yield strength 159-221 MPa
Modulus of elasticity 193100 MPa
 APPLICATIONS OF WROUGHT
IRON

The following are the list of applications

of wrought iron:

• Decorative items such as railings,

outdoor stairs, fences and gates
• Nuts and bolts
• Handrails.
 CAST IRON

Cast iron is a ferrous alloy which has more Following are some important
than 2% carbon in it. Though it can have types of it
any percentage of carbon between 2% to
6.67%, but practically it is in between 2% • Grey
to 4% only. • Ductile
• Compacted graphite
It has got its name due to its excellent • White
casting qualities. It is hard and brittle. • Malleable
• Abrasion resistant
There is a basic difference between cast • Nodular or spheroidal
iron and steel. Steel contains less than 1% • Austenitic
carbon and cast iron contains more than
2% carbon.
 ADVANTAGES OF CAST IRON

•It has Good casting properties

•It is available in large quantities, hence produced in mass scale. Tools required for casting process
are relatively cheap and inexpensive. This results into low cost of its products.
•It can be given any complex shape and size without using costly machining operations
•It has three to five times more compression strength compared to steel
•It has Good machinability (gray cast iron)
•It has excellent anti-vibration (or damping) properties hence it is used to make machine frames
•It has good Sensibility
•It has excellent resistance to wear
•It has constant Mechanical properties between 20 to 350 degree Celsius
•It has very low notch sensitivity
•It has Low stress concentration
•It bears Low cost
•It has Durability
•It has Resistance to deformation
 DISADVANTAGES OF CAST
IRON

•t is Prone to rusting
•It has poor tensile strength
•Its parts are section sensitive, this is due to slow cooling of thick sections.
•failure of Its parts is sudden and total, it does not exhibit yield point.
•It has poor impact resistance
•Compared to steel it has poor machinability
•It has High weight to strength ratio
•It has High brittleness
•It is Non machinable (white cast iron)
 APPLICATIONS OF CAST IRON

•It is used in making pipes, to carry suitable fluids

•It is used in making different machines
•It is used in making automotive parts
•It is used in making pots pans and utensils
•It is used in making anchor for ships.
 PIG IRON

Pig iron is an output obtained as a result of the process of manufacturing iron. Fuel coke
with high carbon is utilized in order to heat the iron ore. This results in the production of
pig iron which is high in carbon content. The cold pig iron is known as merchant pig
iron, which is cast into blocks or ingots. These are then sold to the ferrous as well as
steel casting industries in the form of feed stock.

There are three types of merchant pig iron, which are as follows:
•Basic pig iron– This is used in electric arc furnace for the purpose of steel making.
•Foundry pig iron– This type of pig iron is also known as hematite pig iron and is used
in cupola furnaces for grey iron castings.
•High purity pig iron– This is synonymous to nodular pig iron and is used for
producing ductile iron castings, which is also known as SG or Spheroidal Graphite. This
is used by the manhole covers manufacturers.
 APPLICATIONS OF PIG IRON

Traditionally, pig iron was worked into wrought iron in finery forges, later puddling

furnaces, and more recently, into steel. In these processes, pig iron is melted and a strong
current of air is directed over it while it is stirred or agitated. This causes the dissolved
impurities (such as silicon) to be thoroughly oxidized. An intermediate product of puddling
is known as refined pig iron, finer metal, or refined iron.

Pig iron can also be used to produce gray iron. This is achieved by remelting pig iron, often
along with substantial quantities of steel and scrap iron, removing undesirable contaminants,
adding alloys, and adjusting the carbon content. Some pig iron grades are suitable for
producing ductile iron. These are high purity pig irons and depending on the grade of ductile
iron being produced these pig irons may be low in the elements silicon, manganese, sulfur and
phosphorus. These types of pig iron are used to dilute all the elements (except carbon) in a
ductile iron charge which may be harmful to the ductile iron process.