Steel is an alloy made by combining iron and other
elements, the most common of these being carbon.
It can be used as reinforcement steel or structural
steel.
STRUCTURAL STEEL
 a category of steel construction material that
is produced with a particular cross section or
shape, and some specified values of strength
and chemical composition.
 manufactured in section and plate shapes
and are normally used in bridges, buildings,
ships, and pipelines.
 includes a broad variety of low carbon and
manganese steels that are used in great
numbers for civil and marine engineering
applications.
TYPES OF STRUCTURAL STEEL
The most common shape of structural steel
used in building constructions:
1. Sections or Shapes – is the product of rolled
mill used as structural members represented
by the shapes of their cross sections.
2. Regular Sections - refers to those
commonly used with higher demand.
3. Special Sections – are those frequently
used and rolled only upon demand or special
arrangement.
4. Plate and Bars – are available in various
sizes specified under ASTM A & or ASTM
A36 for building and bridges. Flat steel is
generally for structural use classified as Bars
and Plates.
5. Angular Bar - steel angle bars are
necessary for building power tower, trusses
for roofing, communication tower,
engineering projects, billboards and other
steel structure buildings.
6. Standard Channel – is unsymmetrical
balance consisting of two flanges on one
side.
7. Wide Flange Sections – are described as
W12 x 24, meaning a depth of 24 and weighs
12 kilogram per meter length
8. Standard I-Beam – when used as column is
uneconomical because the whirl or revolving
action of the structure about an axis through
the centroid parallel to the web of the I- beam
is comparatively small.
9. H-Bearing Piles – is suitable for pile driving
on deep excavation, but it is much more
suitable than I- Beam for columns.
10. Zee and Tee Sections – is another structural
steel in a form of letter Z. It is not commonly
used in building construction except in the
fabrication of steel and windows and other
frames.
HOW IS IT MADE?
While the shorthand version of how structural steel
is created involves heating iron up and adding
certain substance to achieve specific properties,
the long version is much more involved.
Raw iron is the chief ingredient, but it is rarely found
pure in nature. Most often it already contains carbon,
but usually in too high a concentration. Some carbon
needs to be removed, but not all. Because of that,
the manufacturing of steel products can be an
involved process.
1. First, the raw iron ore is crushed and sorted.
There are a number of different refining processes,
all designed to sort out the best grades of iron,
usually around 60 percent.
2. Ore is the loaded into a blast furnace from
the top and heated, while hot air is blown into the
furnace from the bottom. The reaction that takes
place begins to remove impurities as pure iron sinks
to the bottom of the furnace.
3. The molten iron is drawn off and is further
heated to allow the inclusion of other substances,
such as manganese, that deliver different properties
to the finished steel product.
How is it different?
There are a number of different configurations you
can find it in, but for the most part, it is all the same
stuff inside. Just like other types of steel, the main
components are iron and carbon. The more carbon
that is added to the alloy, the higher the strength and
lower the ductility of the finished product. Other
chemicals or substances can be added in the
production process that can:
1. Improve strength
2. Deliver more or less ductility
3. Improve economics of use
One of the most common additions to structural
steel, after iron and carbon, is manganese.
Manganese improves the machinability of steel, and
also help bind steel better to resist cracking and
splitting during the rolling process.
The ratio of carbon in structural steel is important
when considering how the metal will be used. While
lower carbon content makes it easier to weld, it also
can make the material harder to work with overall,
which lowers the speed it can be constructed with.
Finding the perfect balance is important when
considering its use.
The resulting steel product has an excellent ratio of
low weight to immense strength, making it the
perfect construction material.
1. Large buildings benefit from the speed of
construction.
2. Industrial buildings can be built cheaper and
repaired more easily
3. Residential living spaces benefit from
increased strength and durability
4. Structural steel is advantageous for bridges
due to its low weight and high strength
Fabrication
Even after it has been formed into shape, structural
steel still requires fabricating and welding. A skilled
fabricator or welder can take advantage of the
relative malleability of structural steel to create
whatever shape is needed for a specific application.
Welding is largely replacing riveting as the chosen
method of fabricating structural steel, and with good
reason. Welded structures are:
1. Lighter than similarly riveted structures
2. More cost effective
3. Easier to navigate and mold than their
riveted counterparts
PROPERTIES OF STRUCTURAL STEEL
1. Density
Density of a material is defined as mass per
unit volume. Structural steel has density of
7.75 to 8.1 g/cm3.
2. Elastic Modulus
Elastic modulus or modulus of elasticity is the
measurement of tendency of an object to be
deformed when force or stress is applied to it.
Typical values for structural steel range from 190-
210 gigapascals.
3. Poisson's Ratio
It is the ratio between contraction and
elongation of the material. Lower the value, lesser
the object will shrink in thickness when stretched.
Acceptable values for structural steel are 0.27 to 0.3.
4. Tensile Strength
Tensile strength of an object is the
determination of limit up to which an object can be
stretched without breaking. Fracture point is the
point at which an object breaks after application of
stress. Structural steel has high tensile strength so
is preferred over other materials for construction.
5. Yield Strength
Yield strength or yield point is the stress at
which an object deforms permanently. It cannot
return to its original shape when stress is removed.
Structural steel made of carbon has yield strengths
of 187 to 758 megapascals. Structural steel made of
alloys has values from 366 to 1793 megapascals.
6. Melting Point
There is no defined value for melting point
due to the wide variations in types of structural steel.
Melting point is the temperature at which object
starts to melt when heated.
7. Specific Heat
Specific heat or heat capacity is the amount
of heat which needs to be applied to the object to
raise its temperature by a given amount. A higher
value of specific heat denotes greater insulation
ability of the object. Values are measured in Joules
per Kilogram Kelvin. Structural steel made of carbon
has values from 450 to 2081 and that made from
alloys has values ranging from 452 to 1499.
8. Hardness
Hardness is the resistance of an object to shape
change when force is applied. There are 3 types of
hardness measurements. Scratch, indentation and
rebound. Structural steel made by using alloys has
hardness value between 149-627 Kg. Structural
steels made of carbon has value of 86 to 388 K
5 REASONS WHY STRUCTURAL STEEL IS SUCH
A POPULAR BUILDING METHOD
1. Quick Build Times - Budget and schedule are
critical to any steel building project, and both are
intertwined. The less time you spend on the jobsite,
the less it costs in manpower.
2. Versatility - Structural steel is such a versatile
product. It can be formed into pretty much any
shape, and its high strength and durability allow to
be used in projects that require long, clear spans,
including:
1. Indoor arenas
2. Agricultural storage buildings
3. Warehouses
4. Airplane and equipment hangars
3. Lighter than Wood - When compared to timber,
glulam or other engineered wood beams, a steel I-
beam with the same load-bearing qualities will weigh
less. This is a result of an I-beam’s contoured shape
and the strength of steel.
4. Environmentally Friendly - Steel is the most
recycled material on the planet. There’s a good
chance that the materials used in your steel building
will come from an existing source. Also, when your
building reaches the end of its lifespan (which will be
well into the future), the steel can be salvaged and
repurposed for a new project.\
5. Jobsite Safety - Jobsite safety is always a priority
with any construction project. Because steel building
materials are prefabricated elsewhere, it streamlines
onsite activity to ensure a safe, efficient building
process.