The term steel plate is not uncommon and depicts an alloy of iron, carbon and a few other elements. Usually, you can acquire it in either rectangular or square shapes of different dimensions. There is, however, the catch that it has to be more than 6mm thick to be considered a plate. When steel falls short of this requirement, it is considered leaf metal or foil.
Depending on the need, the thickness can be expanded even past the 100mm mark which also coincidentally increases strength. This is done by layering sheets of steel on top of each other and combining them to become one. Also, depending on the elements included and their percentages the steel might exhibit different properties. It also means that there are going to be different types of steel plate. Consequently, you will find that people use steel plates for different purposes. Here are some examples of industries where plates play a significant role.
Steel Plates in Construction
In many typical applications, the type of steel used in construction is in the form of bars. However, in recent times there is more and more inclusion of the steel plate in building high-rises, offices and even stadiums.
One unique application is in the form of reinforced concrete. This is where two steel plates with similar dimensions are held together by welded stringers. However, there is a significant amount of hollow space left between the joined plates. At the construction site, a crane positions the plates and finally, concrete is poured in to fill the space in between. This is considered one of the stronger methods of construction. In addition to resistance to tensile forces, another benefit is that it reduces construction time.
In infrastructure development, you will also find steel plates are quite standard. In bridges, for example, the plates may form the surface that people and vehicles use to cross a river. Also, it may establish a base so that other products such as asphalt and tar are placed on top creating a road.
Steel Plates in Transport
Mild steel plate is easy to form and is relatively lightweight. Consequently, you will see its widespread use in the transport sector with one of the biggest consumers being motor vehicle manufacturers. As you probably already know most vehicle bodies are made of steel. Nonetheless, it is still pretty heavy and will account for much of the weight of the car.
Trains and ships also have bodies made from steel plates. With a ship, however, the thickness of the plate needs to be a lot more than it would be for a car. Also, a requirement is that plate steel for ships should be a lot more resistant to tensile forces. This is because they usually carry more weight.
For army vehicles, the requirements may be a little different. Their vehicles are supposed to protect them in transit even in situations where they might get attacked. Mild steel would expose soldiers to risk as it is not resistant to impact. Quenched and Tempered steel may serve better in this regard.
Steel Plates in Energy
In oil, for example, pipes transport the crude oil to the refinery. After that, a series of processes converts the oil into more useful products such as petroleum. Usually, these pipes are quite large and need to be strong enough to handle the volume. Some of them come about when you bring together the edges of a plate and weld them together. After that people weld pipes together in their final cylindrical form to elongate them. Also, oil rigs may have platforms made using steel plates.
Steel Plates in Manufacturing
Steel plates are also used to make everyday appliances that most people can’t live without. Boilers are one such example as they make life so much more convenient. The type of steel required to make boilers work efficiently needs to have low-temperature properties. It also needs to withstand the pressure exerted due to rises in temperature.
On the other end, you will find steel in low-temperature scenarios such as the making of commercial refrigerators and freezers. Other domestic applications include the home washing machine.
Steel plates clearly have a lot of benefits to modern society. The above list only touches on a few of the areas where they are most useful. Countless others use cases may even include art applications. Having so much to choose from makes this product all the more versatile.
Are there any more uses you can think of? Comment and let us know