When you are working with steel to fabricate or create something and need the material to be strong but still workable, you may want to choose an A36 steel plate, bar, or other stock. A36 steel is low carbon steel that is not hardenable through heat treating, but is strong in its raw form, is used in many ways, and is one of the most popular products on the steel market.
Buying A36 Steel
If you are looking for A36 steel for a project or job, the steel distributor in your area should have a wide selection of this material. Because it is used for so many different things, the steel is produced as plate steel in many different thicknesses, bar stock, round and square tubing of varying sizes, angle stock, and other shapes.
The requirement for A36 steel is a specific amount of carbon by weight, and the steel may also have some other metals that are typically considered alloying metals mixed into the steel. As long as these additional materials remain in extremely small amounts and the carbon stays under the limits, the material is deemed A36 steel and can be sold that way.
Fabrication Benefits
When working with steel to fabricate anything, low carbon products like A36 steel are easier to cut, bend, and weld on than high carbon options. The material is also not affected by heat-treating processes because of the low carbon content, avoiding issues with brittle steel after hardening.
A36 is ductile steel, so it can be shaped and formed without cracking and, in most situations, will retain the same strength it started with unless it is stretched very thin. A36 steel is very versatile, and many great uses for it do not require harder steel or application that would actually be far worse if you used high carbon materials in their design.
For a fabrication shop, this material can allow them to bend, machine, and manipulate the steel to create many things that they would not be able to make from less flexible or malleable materials. Being able to heat a piece of bar stock and then press or hammer it flat without damage can have some very appealing uses in any fabrication shop.
Recycling Steel
If you want to recycle the scrap material left from a job, A36 steel being a raw low carbon product without a lot of alloying metals added to it makes it easier to recycle. Steel manufacturers can add the scraps to other materials or remelt them into more low-carbon steel for resale, making the material suitable for reducing environmental impact and stretching resources as new metals are produced.