What Does
Semi-finished Steel Mean?
Semi-finished steel is an intermediate steel produced in a foundry. It needs further processing before being processed into finished goods.
Semi-finished steel products are available in various sizes, grades and forms to meet the diverse requirements of various industries. It is used in iron & steel rolling mills for production of finished products.
Corrosionpedia Explains Semi-finished Steel
Semi-finished steels are produced by the continuous casting of liquid steel or by rolling or forging of ingots (a primary solidification of liquid steel). Chemistry is adjusted to meet specific physical properties and grade requirements.
Semi-finished steels have four main classifications:
- Ingots are large rough castings designed for storage and transportation. The shape usually resembles a rectangle or square with generous fillets.
- Billets are semi-finished long steel products with a square cross section. This product is either rolled or continuously cast and is then transformed by rolling to obtain finished products. Billets are used for long steel products such as:
- Bars/angles
- Profiles/channels
- Other structural shapes
- Blooms are semi-finished long products with a square or rectangular cross section greater than 160mm. Blooms can be made by continuous casting or by rolling from an ingot. Common finish products include structural shapes/rails/rods and seamless.
- Slabs are semi-finished steel products obtained by rolling ingots on a rolling mill or processed through a continuous caster and cut into various lengths. The slab has a rectangular cross section. Slabs are used for the production of heavy machinery or for hot rolling into other thinner products like:
- Plates
- Sheet metal/strip metal
- Pipes/tubes
- Coils