How is Steel Wire Made? - Reibus International

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How is Steel Wire Made?

Steel Foundations

Wire rod is the coiled product of a rod mill with a diameter range of 0.218 to 0.813 inch (5.5 to 20.6 mm).

Most coiled wire rods are manufactured with the expectation that they are subsequently cold drawn into wire, with or without an intermediate heat treatment. The properties of the rods before cold drawing are utilized to make wire with the characteristics required for the final application. Some of these applications include springs, cold-headed fasteners, tire beads and tire cords, bridge cables, wire ropes, nails, fencing, and welded wire mesh.

Wire rod is produced in a hot roll process, where blooms or billets are heated and then rolled to the required diameter through a series of rolling passes (generally referred to as roughing, intermediate, and finishing passes).

Coiled wire rod is typically produced via a laying head process at the end of the finishing stands in the rod mill. The laying head produces a coiled product that is stacked at the end of the process.

Steel wire is then produced from the coiled wire rod to a diameter typically less than 0.5 inches (12.7 mm). Unlike the hot roll process of wire rod, steel wire is produced using a drawing process, where the coiled wire rod’s cross-section is reduced by pulling it through a single or series of drawing dies. Drawing is usually performed at room temperature, classified as a cold working process, but may be performed at elevated temperatures for large wires to reduce required forces.

Wire and Rod Form Overview

ESPI offers wire and rod made up of many different elements and/or alloys in numerous other forms and purities, up to 6N (99.9999%), including:

• Ribbon
• Pieces
• Discs
• Chips
• Foil
• Ingots
• Sheet
• Ampoules
• Powder
• Sputtering Targets
• Shot
• Custom Fabricated Parts
• Pellets

With competitive pricing and timely delivery, Nearyz Resources sincerely hopes to be your supplier and partner.

All forms can be manufactured to custom specifications. For time-critical applications where standard sizes meet project requirements, take advantage of ESPI’s Ready-To-Ship (RTS) program. ESPI stocks pre-fabricated items in foil and sheet that are available for same day shipment.* To view the Ready to Ship products, click here. For a quotation, call, email, or click "Chat Now" to the right for immediate assistance.

*Order must be received by 1:00 pm Pacific Time.

Drawing Wire and Rod

Wire is typically a single, cylindrical, flexible strand of metal used to carry electricity and telecommunications signals or to bear mechanical loads. In contrast, rod is often used as a structural component assumed to possess some mechanical strength without being bundled. The term wire is also used more loosely to refer to a bundle of such strands, as in 'multi-stranded wire,' which is more correctly termed a wire rope in mechanics or a cable in electricity.

Although wire is usually circular in cross-section and rod customarily a larger, stiffer form of wire in the form of a bar, both can be made into square, hexagonal, flattened rectangular, or other cross-section forms for decorative, mechanical, or technical purposes. Edge-wound coil springs, such as the Slinky toy, are made of special flattened wire.

Wire and rod are commonly formed by drawing or extruding, which are metalworking processes using tensile forces to change their form by either pulling (draw) or pushing (extrude) metal through a die of the desired cross-section to create objects of a fixed cross-sectional profile.

Drawing is typically done in a number of steps by pulling the metal through a hole in a die or draw plate as the die is continually reduced in diameter until the correct size is produced. Drawing is usually done at room temperature, thus classified as a cold working process, though it may be performed at elevated temperatures to hot work large wires and rods or hollow sections to reduce forces. Extrusion, on the other hand, is usually a hot working process where the material's temperature is above recrystallization to keep the material from work hardening since it is easier to push the material through the die. Most hot extrusions are done on horizontal hydraulic presses that range from 230 to 11,000 metric tons under pressures ranging from 30 to 4,400 to 100,000 psi, therefore lubrication is required, which can be oil or graphite for lower temperature extrusions, or glass powder for higher temperature extrusions.

Not all metals and metallic alloys possess the physical properties necessary to make useful wire. The metals must be ductile and strong in tension, a quality on which the utility of wire principally depends. The metals suitable for wire, possessing almost equal ductility, include platinum, silver, iron, copper, aluminum, and gold. It is only from these and certain of their alloys with other metals, principally brass and bronze, that wire is prepared.

Vast quantities of aluminum, copper, nickel, and steel wire are employed for telephone and data cables and as conductors in electric power transmission, electronics, and semiconductors. The vast majority of rod manufacturing seems to be in steel (for rebar) and aluminum and alloys for the manufacturing of bolts. But wire and rod are not limited to a small number of items on the periodic table; many research labs, universities, and specialty manufacturers utilize rod and wire in many different forms of unusual alloys and elements for experimentation, development, and production.

Workmanship Standards

Where not specified in the purchase order or contract, ESPI shall apply standard workmanship tolerances. Rounds (rod, wire, etc.): +/-10% for diameter and length. Profiles (plate, sheet, foil, etc.): +/-10% for thickness, width, and length. Other non-machined solids (powder, shot, pieces, etc.): +/-10% for weight, +/-25% for size.

Purity

Material purities indicate a minimum allowable purity. Purities may be higher than stated based on availability. Rare Earth purities are based upon rare earth contaminants. Metal purities are reported on a metals basis; zirconium purity excludes Hf. Purities of fabricated metal products are generally based on ingot chemistry.

Quality Assurance

ESPI's comprehensive line of high-purity metals, alloys, and chemical compounds are distributed to scientists worldwide. Trust has been earned by our customers by maintaining a strong commitment to quality and excellence. All materials listed in the catalog are thoroughly tested by our quality control department. The figures given as typical analyses have been compiled through an average of previous batches. They provide a guide to the nature and extent of the impurities that may be expected and may vary from batch to batch. Actual material analyses will be provided free of charge upon request for those items which have had analysis work conducted in the normal course of production. For those items for which no analysis has been conducted, an analysis will be provided for a charge.

If you want to learn more, please visit Steel Wire Rod Manufacturers.