page i
Introduction

Steel in our world
Steel is the most useful of metals. We use steel for many jobs at home, school or in the workplace. Steelmaking is an important industry, contributing to the economy and employing thousands of people.

At school, you may have discussed steelmaking in Chemistry. However, there are many applications of Physics in the industry and, in the three electronic resources (e-sources) here, we will look at some of them:

  1. Loud but clear - sound in steelmaking
  2. Hot metal - heating and cooling
  3. Ionising radiations
You can find out more about the Chemistry of steelmaking in the Chemistry of steelmaking e-source on this site.
About these e-sources
There are a number of interactive features in this e-source:

A glossary of terms: any word with a glossary entry is highlighted like that. Clicking on the word will open a new window with a definition of that word.

Quick questions: at the end of each page is a quick question to test your understanding of that page. Type in your own answer then click on the button to show the answer that experts would give.

Roll over diagrams: many of the diagrams have highlights or sequences. You can see these by rolling your cursor over part of the picture or part of the text. The text has a roll over highlight like that.

Corus
In 1999 British Steel merged with the Dutch steel and aluminium producer Koninklijke Hoogovens to form an exciting new force in metals called Corus. The new group will rise to the challenge of today’s global markets, serving the market needs for aluminium, carbon steel and stainless steel.

One of the aims of Corus’ education programme is to enhance the work related curriculum and enrich classroom activity. Like all its educational resources, The Physics in steelmaking has been produced in partnership with schools, colleges and teachers. In this way Corus ensures that these resources are directly relevant to the needs of all UK schools.

We hope you will find this e-source useful in your studies and informative about steel, one of the basic elements of every industrial society. We welcome your comments and suggestions on schoolscience.
Summary                   Close
  • Find out about the physics of steelmaking