Rolling means that the metal is passed through a series of heavy rolls whereby its thickness is reduced and it takes on a defined shape. As a result, rolled steel enables the production of sheet metal steel for various industrial purposes, such as
cold rolled stainless steel coils for standard structural components in rolled shapes or special custom profiles.
What is cold rolling technology?
Cold rolling technology refers to the process in which steel or stainless steel metal is rolled at room temperature instead of being heated to 1100 degrees Celsius. Forming can be performed by passing steel through rollers at room temperature.
Additionally, this heat treatment can be used to produce flat metal, coiled products or sections. Thus, the raw material passes through the rollers relative to the recrystallization temperature of the relevant type of steel or stainless steel. The crystal structure is also deformed. In addition, the grain size decreases, leading to increased strengthening.
The steel must pass through the rolls several times to achieve the desired thickness or shape, which can take longer than the hot rolling process.
What are the highlights of cold rolling technology?
- smoother finish
- Increased strength up to 20%
- Higher precision than hot rolled products
- Increased metal hardness
-Reduce the particle size of the metal
-Higher quality finish
- Smaller production batches
- Efficient manufacturing process
Cold forming makes the stainless steel finish more noble and attractive. While the hot rolled surface i.e. plate (usually defined as 1D in EN 10088) has a matt surface, the same plate in cold rolling execution (2D) is blank and has a nice and smooth surface.
Where can cold rolled material be used?
Cold-rolled sheet is used where a good, smooth surface is required, and tight tolerances in thickness are necessary. Increased material yield is another advantage, especially for standard austenitic stainless steels such as 304L and 316L.
In addition, custom shapes and sections are made by cold rolling. Usually, hot-rolled wire rods with a diameter of 25 mm are used as raw materials and formed into finished shapes by various brackets. The parts are rather small but can be combined with high precision (h9) for complex shaping.
Therefore, cold rolled products are preferred when a final high-end finish such as a mirror finish is added to it as the polishing process becomes easier and cheaper.
