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2025

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Is higher carbon steel harder or softer?

Carbon Steel is alloy metal with iron and carbon which carbon content less than 2%, according to the quantity of carbon content, the carbon steel can be divided into three different kinds, low carbon steel, medium carbon steel, high carbon steel. The carbon content of the low carbon steel is under 0.25%, the carbon content of medium carbon steel is between 0.25% to 0.6%, the carbon content of high carbon steel is over 0.6%.

 

The three kinds of carbon steel have different character and different application scene. Low Carbon Steel have good weldabiliy, ductility and toughness, so it is east to process and form. The low carbon steel usually used in manufacturing large structures and automotive bodies and other components that require strength and toughness. The Medium Carbon Steel have relatively high strength and hardness, compared with low carbon steel, it’s ductility is slightly lower. The Medium Steel is suitable for the manufacturing of mechanical parts, gears and some components that required certain strength and rigidity. High Carbon steel have extremely high hardness and strength, but it has relatively low ductility and is prone to brittle fracture. So the high carbon steel are suitable for the manufacturing cutting tools, spring steel and other parts with high hardness requirements.

 

Through the above introduction of low, medium and high carbon steel, we can draw a conclusion that the the higher the carbon content, the harder the steel produced. And The higher the carbon content, the higher the hardness, strength and wear resistance of the steel after heating treatment, and the more brittle it is. The lower the carbon content, the softer it is and the more resistant it is to ductility.

 

In addition, carbon steel also contains small amounts of sulfur and phosphorus, according to the different contains of sulfur and phosphorus in the carbon steel, carbon steel can be divided into high quality carbon steel and normal carbon steel. In DONGTE STEEL, all of our carbon steel product high quality carbon steel with less sulfur and phosphorus to make sure that the carbon steel have long use lifespan. If you want to purchase carbon steel, please contact DONGTE STEEL online, DONGTE will welcome all the questions about steel purchase.

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