Steel Pressure Processing Methods
Most steel processing is carried out through pressure processing, causing the steel being processed (billets, ingots, etc.) to undergo plastic deformation. Depending on the processing temperature, it is divided into cold working and hot working. The main processing methods for steel are:
1. Rolling
A pressure processing method in which a metal billet is passed through the gap between a pair of rotating rollers (of various shapes); compression by the rollers reduces the material's cross-section and increases its length. This is the most commonly used production method for steel, mainly used to produce sections, plates, and tubes. It is divided into cold rolling and hot rolling.
2. Forging
A pressure processing method that uses the reciprocating impact force of a forging hammer or the pressure of a press to change a billet into the required shape and size. It is generally divided into open-die forging and closed-die forging, and is commonly used to produce large sections, blooms, and other materials with relatively large cross-sectional dimensions.
3. Drawing
A processing method in which already rolled metal billets (sections, tubes, products, etc.) are drawn through a die orifice to reduce the cross-section and increase the length; it is mostly used as cold working.
4. Extrusion
A processing method in which metal is placed in a closed extrusion container and pressure is applied at one end, forcing the metal to be extruded through a specified die orifice to obtain a finished product of the same shape and size; it is mostly used to produce non-ferrous metal materials.
Hebei Province has announced that within this year it will cut ironmaking capacity by 10 million tons and steelmaking capacity by 8 million tons, and will set a “ceiling” of 200 million tons for the province's steel capacity over the next five years, but at present the steel output of the entire province is still increasing.
Hebei, the leading province in China's steel industry, is starting with the provincial capital Shijiazhuang to carry out the withdrawal of steel plants from the city and the reduction of capacity.
The latest document issued by the Shijiazhuang Municipal Government, the “Hebei Province Steel Industry Structural Adjustment and Resolution of Excess Capacity Action Plan (2015-2017),” shows that by the end of 2017, by reducing part of the steel capacity of Jingye Group and implementing the relocation of Hegang Group Shijiazhuang Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Shigang), the city will complete the total task assigned by Hebei Province of reducing ironmaking capacity by 3.74 million tons and steelmaking capacity by 4.82 million tons, totaling 8.56 million tons.