Craft · 6 pages · 12 min

Why cast iron, wrought iron, and steel are not one metal

The three differ in carbon, in slag, and in whether they bend, snap, or take a heat treatment.

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From the opening

Cast iron, wrought iron, and steel are all mostly iron, and they are not interchangeable versions of it. Carbon content, the form that carbon takes, and the presence or absence of slag change how each one breaks, casts, forges, and rusts. The opening covers cast iron snaps on graphite, wrought iron bends with slag fibers, and steel carbon can be hardened.

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Inside

Cast iron snaps on graphite
Wrought iron bends with slag fibers
Steel carbon can be hardened
Mild steel replaced wrought bars
Where the idea stops applying
A distinction worth keeping

Sources

Gray cast iron and graphite flakes
Puddled wrought iron with slag inclusions

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Why cast iron, wrought iron, and steel are not one metal

From the opening

Inside

Sources

Also on the desk