Construction is one such activity that can be found beyond commercial and residential purposes. Construction is a significant activity in the oil and gas industry and involves lakhs of workers in the segment. When we talk numbers, it covers almost 5-6% of the total workers in the oil and gas industry.
Construction work is a significant activity in all three sectors of the supply chain – upstream, midstream and downstream. Here, we will discuss one of the essential materials used in constructing the giant sector: Steel.
This is an essential concept in the oil and gas courses for mechanical engineers. Therefore, you need to focus at a very different level.
Properties of Steel used in the construction
Steel is a type of ferrous metal used in oil and gas construction.
Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon, where the carbon content is usually less than 1.7%.
Steel is an iron alloy with low carbon content. The carbon in typical steel alloys may contribute up to 2.14% of its weight. You can change the qualities of Steel by altering the amount of carbon and other alloying elements of Steel such as silicon, cobalt, vanadium etc. Once you vary these amounts, you can induce ductility, hardness, toughness, strength, corrosion and resistance in the Steel.
When you opt for oil and gas training courses online, you will find detailed information on this segment related to construction.
Types of Steel used.
Steels can be classified in many ways based on the methods used in their manufacture, on the carbon content, or according to their use. Let’s see the types.
Carbon steel
Carbon steel is the Simplest type of Steel. It is a friendly metal for Casting, Forging, Machining and welding and all other manufacturing processes. It is the cheapest and most readily available metal among all types of Steel.
Carbon steel has a chemical composition of a maximum of 1.5% carbon, 1.5% manganese and 1% silicon. Other elements such as chromium, nickel, molybdenum, copper etc., may also be present, but in trace amounts of less than 0.5%.
Alloy steel
When elements are added to Steel other than iron and carbon, the Steel is known as alloy Steel.
The purpose of alloying is to enhance the properties of Steel, like fine-grain size inculcation, improvement in the hardness, toughness, strength, corrosion resistance, etc.
They are of 2 types –
Low alloy steel
In low alloy steel, any single alloying element other than Carbon, Manganese and Silica might exceed 0.5% but not more than 10.5%. Typically, Chromium, Nickel, Molybdenum, Vanadium, Titanium etc., are the unique alloying elements.
High alloy steel
Steel in which any alloying elements like Chromium, Nickel etc., are present in more than 10.5% is grouped as alloy steel or High alloy steel. An example is Stainless Steel).
Why do we need alloying in Steel?
Alloying helps in the following ways:
- Steel can have more tensile strength without altering its workability.
- Resistance to high temperature, abrasion and corrosion may be improved significantly.
- The electrical, magnetic, and thermal properties may be induced in the desired direction.
These were just a highlight of one of the critical materials used in the construction activities in the oil and gas industry. To know such detailed topics related to the same, check our online course for piping engineering.
by Debashree P
Debashree is an Aeronautical engineer by education and a curious researcher by passion. She is passionate about engineering and technology. She is an avid technology writer who has a knack for developing content for websites, newsletters, blogs, articles, advertising and marketing materials based on the requirements. Technologies of her interest include Aviation, Oil & Gas and AI.