Stainless Steel

The stainless steels generally used in architecture are highly alloyed steels that contain more than 10% chromium. They are characterised by their resistance to heat, oxidation and corrosion. The stainless steels are hardened by cold working. They also have heat conductivity but high thermal expansion; both these characteristics, particularly the latter, are important when stainless steel is used in buildings. Austenitic and Ferritic steel are those normally used as curtain/cladding framing member. Martensitic steel is relatively cheap but has lower resistance to corrosion, thus is unsuitable for most building application.