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Wear-resistant steels are essential basic equipment in many industries – whether in recycling, mining and tunnel construction, construction machinery or bulk materials technology. They ensure a longer service life, less downtime and lower maintenance costs. In this article, we provide an overview of the most important properties of wear-resistant steels, their possible applications and the differences between well-known brands such as Creusabro®, Dillidur®, Durostat®, Brinar® and Hardox®.
Wear-resistant steels are high-strength, specially alloyed fine-grained steels that have been developed for applications involving intensive abrasive or impact-type stresses. A high surface hardness – usually in the range of 400 to 600 HB – combined with sufficient toughness to prevent cracking or chipping is typical.
The most important requirements for modern wear-resistant steels are
High abrasion resistance
Good cold and hot formability
Weldability without complex pre-treatment
Toughness, even at low temperatures
Available in various thicknesses and formats
The exceptional hardness and strength of wear-resistant steels results from a combination of chemical composition and targeted heat treatment. The following factors in particular come into play here:
Alloying elements: To increase hardness and wear resistance, certain elements are added to the steel – in particular carbon, manganese, chromium, nickel, molybdenum or boron. These promote the formation of hard structural components such as martensite or bainite.
Heat treatment: After rolling, wear-resistant steels are often tempered, i.e. hardened and then tempered. This produces a martensitic structure with high hardness and sufficient toughness.
Modern technologies: Some brands – such as Creusabro® – also use so-called TRIP effects (Transformation Induced Plasticity). The material hardens further under load, which further increases the service life in particularly abrasive applications.
The use of wear-resistant steels can significantly improve the service life and cost-effectiveness of systems and components. Typical advantages:
Longer service life for buckets, troughs, wear linings, etc.
Reduced maintenance effort and shorter downtimes
Weight savings thanks to thinner but robust components
Better protection in demanding environmental conditions such as heat or cold
The areas of application are diverse – wear-resistant steels are used wherever materials are subject to friction, impact or temperature stress:
Recycling industry: shredders, screens, baffle plates
Mining & quarrying: loading shovels, conveyors, crushers
Construction machinery: dump trucks, excavator buckets, wear plates
Cement and steel industry: chutes, hoppers, transfers
Agriculture & Forestry: Knives, counter knives, protective plates
Various brand names have become established on the market and are often used for comparison in practice:
Creusabro® (Industeel/ArcelorMittal): with TRIP effect for self-hardening and high heat resistance
Dillidur® (Dillinger): proven quality steel for a wide range of standard applications
Durostat® (voestalpine): wear-resistant steel with a fine-grained structure and good cold formability
Brinar® (Salzgitter Mannesmann): tough steel for use at low temperatures
Hardox® (SSAB): internationally renowned and frequently used as a reference in the industry
Not every wear-resistant steel is suitable for every application. The following criteria play a role in the selection:
Type of wear (abrasive, impact, erosive)
Temperature load in use
Desired service life and repairability
Availability in the required sheet thickness or dimension
Processability (welding, bending, milling)
Wear-resistant steels offer effective protection against wear, save costs in operation and extend the service life of machine components. Whether Creusabro®, Dillidur®, Durostat®, Brinar® or Hardox® – with the right choice, nothing stands in the way of a long-lasting solution.
As a stockholding supplier, UnionStahl stocks a wide range of wear-resistant steels – in various thicknesses, qualities and cuts. Our specialist advisors will be happy to help you select the right material for your application.
Contact us now – for expert material advice and fast availability!
Pressure vessel steel grades are special steel grades that are designed for the manufacture of containers that must withstand high pressure and temperature loads and
