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ASTMA27Steel:AGuideToChoosingTheRightGrade|Casting&FoundryServices

ASTM A27 Steel: A Guide to Choosing the Right Grade for Your Casting

There are several grades of steel covered under ASTM A27

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Written by: Brad Done Published: October 30, 2014

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When a company places an order with a foundry, the material must

be identified so the end product will have the qualities you need for

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best performance. Orders are usually made to ASTM specifications,

Industrial Steel Whe

which classifies steel and other materials based on mechanical

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properties and intended use. ASTM International (http://www.astm.org/) ,

formerly known as the American Society for Testing and Materials
(ASTM), is a globally recognized standards organization. Approximately
12,000 ASTM standards are used to improve product quality, enhance

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304 Vs 316 S

safety, facilitate market access and trade, and build consumer confidence. ASTM standards are much more

Steel

widely used in the United States than other standards such as those of SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers)

Natural corr

and ANSI (American National Standards Institute). These groups overlap each other, but are generally

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consistent.

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Depending on the mechanical and chemical properties required, steel will contain varying amounts of alloys
apart from carbon. ASTM A27

(http://www.astm.org/Standards/A27.htm)

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is a specification developed for carbon steel

castings for general application, often called "mild steel" or "plain carbon steel", as opposed to stainless steel,

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high strength steel used for structural purposes and some other types of steel. The low price and mechanical

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properties of this common form of alloy steel make it desirable for a wide range of uses.

encourage r

ASTM A27 steel requires up to 70 ksi (485 MPa) minimum tensile strength.

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At room temperature low carbon steels such as A27 offer a good combination of strength and resiliency.
It is malleable and ductile.

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Various grades of A27 steel may contain a maximum of .03% Carbon, .08% Silicon, .12% Manganese, .05%
Phosphorous, and .06% Sulfur.

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ASTM A27 Chemical Analysis Requirements for Steel Grades. C=carbon, Mn=manganese, Si=silicon, S=sulfur, P=Phosphorous, Ni=Nickel, Cr=chromium,

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Mo=Molybdenum, Cu=copper

Precast conc

ASTM A27 Steel Grades and Treatments

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There are several grades of steel covered under ASTM A27, and each grade varies based on the percentage of

and aestheti

chemical properties that affect changes in mechanical properties. These grades are established by testing that

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includes type and amount of alloys, chemical composition size, toughness, hardness, resistance to corrosion,

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pitting, heat treating processes and more. The results are listed in an alphanumeric system.
When you are choosing your steel grade, choose the one that that fulfills your real requirements rather than a
grade that has been tested for additional conditions your casting will not undergo. If you demand testing
beyond your actual needs and narrow the acceptance criteria, you add expense without increasing serviceability
of the casting. The amount of testing and the acceptance criteria should follow the design and service
requirements.

Archives
2012 2013

ASTM A27 Steel Grades

Grade N-1: Chemical analysis only
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Grade N-2: Heat treated but not mechanically tested

Grade U-60-30: Mechanically tested but not heat treated
Grades 60-30, 65-35, 70-36 and 70-40: Heat treated and mechanically tested
Except for Grades N-1 and U-60-30, all A27 steel castings are to be heat treated by full annealing, normalizing,
normalizing and tempering, or quenching and tempering. Heat treatments must be performed after castings
have been allowed to cool.
Classes (used by customers for further clarification of their desired product qualities)
Class 1: Post weld heat treatment is required.
Class 2: Post weld heat treatment is not required.
A27 Cast Steel Testing
Tests are made on steel bars of the same composite of the casting, not on the casting itself. Therefore, the

Writers

VICE PRESIDENT OF

MARKETING, RELIAN
CO. LTD.

Brad Done

TECHNICAL MARKE

RELIANCE FOUNDR

Shawn Ches

TECHNICAL MARKE

RELIANCE FOUNDR

Bryce Tarling

results show the steel quality, but not necessarily the properties of the actual casting. If a heat treatment is
administered, solidification conditions and rate of cooling have an impact; rate of cooling is affected by the size,
shape and thickness of the casting.
Steel specifications generally refer to the tensile and yield strength. ASTM A27 grade 70-40, for example, refers
to 70,000 lb tensile strength and 40,000 lbs yield strength. Except for Grades N-1 and N-2, all A27 steel must
undergo a tension test and conform to the following mechanical requirements: tensile strength, yield point,
elongation and reduction of area. To understand testing basics, you will need a few definitions.
Tensile strength (TS) is also referred to as ultimate tensile strength (UTS). It is the strength of a material
measured by the greatest stress it can undergo while being stretched before breaking.
Yield strength represents the tension a material can undergo before it starts to deform and elongate.
Elongation is the length that a tensile test piece stretches before breaking or fracturing (length at
breaking less length at beginning of yielding)
Reduction of area is the amount of necking or narrowing that a tensile test piece achieves while
elongating until a fracture takes place.

Elongation and Reduction of ASTM A27 Steel by Grade

Tensile strength is not the same as hardness. Hardness testing such as Brinell testing, the oldest form of
hardness testing, is covered under ASTM E10 and ISO 6506. Brinell testing is the most commonly used for steel
castings, though there are others. Hardness of various grades may put a restriction on the size of the casting,
so this is a factor to consider
Likewise, dont confuse tensile strength with compressive strength. When metal is tested for elongation, the
atoms extend, and it is in tension. Compression is when the sample shortens, that is, when the atoms are
forced together rather than apart as in tension. To give a better idea, consider that concrete usually has a
higher compressive strength than tensile strength. You cannot extend concrete far before it cracks. However,
glass has a higher tensile strength than compressive strength. Glass cracks easily when compressed.

Yield and Tensile Strength of ASTM A27 Steel by Grade

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Sources
About ASTM International (http://www.astm.org/ABOUT/overview.html) , ASTM International
Steel Castings Handbook, Supplement 2 (http://www.sfsa.org/sfsa/pubs/hbk/s2.pdf) , Steel Founders Society of
America
Standard Specification for Steel Castings, Carbon, for General Application (http://www.astm.org/Standards/A27.htm) ,
ASTM International
ASTM A27/A27M: Standard Specification for Steel Castings, Carbon, for General Application
(http://engineers.ihs.com/document/abstract/HHBWCBAAAAAAAAAA)

, IHS

Buyer, Specifying a Steel Casting (http://www.sfsa.org/sfsa/buyrord3.php#spf5) , Steel Founders Society of America

Tensile Testing (http://www.instron.us/wa/applications/test_types/tension/default.aspx) , Instron
Brinell Hardness Test (http://www.instron.us/wa/applications/test_types/hardness/brinell.aspx) , Instron
Reliance Foundry Co. Ltd. delivers the highest-quality stock and custom-designed products for
architectural site furnishings, traffic management and industrial applications. Since 1925, Reliance
Foundry has built upon a long tradition of metal casting expertise to become an award-winning
supplier for high-profile and everyday operations across North America.

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