Stainless steel

Stainless steel (other names anti-corrosion steel, corrosion-resistant steel, corrosion-resistant steel, corrosion-resistant steel, corrosion-resistant steel, noble stainless steel; rather informally inox [from Fr.], antikoro, stainless steel, older anticorro [last three by trade mark "Anticorro" of the Poldi smelter, patented in 1910]; incorrectly stainless steel [according to the hist. trade mark "Nerez"], incorrectly stainless steel) is a steel highly alloyed with chromium, nickel, manganese and possibly other additives (silicon, copper, molybdenum, tungsten, niobium, nitrogen and the like).

It is a corrosion-resistant steel. It is an important construction material for equipment for the chemical industry, the food industry, and especially for nuclear technology.

Breakdown by composition:

chromium hardenable (12-17% Cr, up to 1% C)
chromium ferritic (above 17% Cr, below 0.1 C)
austenitic (above 18% Cr, above 8% Ni, below 0.1% C)
two-phase austenitic-ferritic (above 20% Cr, 3-6% Ni, below 0.1% C).