Different Types of Carbon Steel Plates

Low Carbon Steel Plate (0.05 < C ≤ 0.25%)

Low carbon steel plate, also known as mild carbon steel plate, is the cheapest and most widely used kind of carbon steel. With a carbon content of less than 0.25%, it is relatively weaker and softer but more fabricable, and easy to process, such as forging, welding, cutting, etc. Low carbon steel plate is mainly used in construction, machinery manufacturing, container manufacturing, shipbuilding, bridge construction, some parts of tractors and welding components, etc. The common codes are Q195, Q215, Q235, Q255, Q275, etc.

Medium Carbon Steel Plate (0.25% < C ≤ 0.6%)

Medium carbon steel plate refers to steel with a high carbon content of 0.25-0.6% and small manganese content of 0.6-1.65%, which can increase the steel’s stress resistance. It provides a balance between low and high carbon steel plates, offering greater strength and hardness than low carbon steel while still remaining more ductile than high carbon steel. Medium carbon steel plate is popular in manufacturing various mechanical parts, such as axles, gears, or building materials.

High Carbon Steel Plate (C > 0.6%)

Commonly known as carbon tool steel, high carbon steel plate tends to have a carbon content of 0.6-1.25% and manganese of 0.3-0.9%, which can be hardened and tempered. By comparison, high carbon steel provides the greatest strength and hardness but the lowest ductility. It means that the high carbon steel plate is very difficult to weld, cut, bend, etc. Therefore, it is mainly used to manufacture smaller parts, iron wires, iron rings, cutting tools, high strength wires and springs, and more.