Skip to content
worldsteel
  • English
  • 中文
Member extranet Data subscribers
MENU
  • English
  • 中文
  • About us
    • Who we are
    • Membership
    • Fellowship programme
    • Steelie Awards
    • Antitrust
    • Positions vacant
  • About steel
    • About steel
    • #steelFacts
    • #lovesteel
    • #steelSafety
    • Glossary
  • Climate Action
    • Policy and initiatives
    • Scrap use
    • Breakthrough technologies
    • Step Up
    • Member initiatives
    • Data collection
  • steelStories
    • All stories
    • Automotive
    • Construction & building
    • Infrastructure
    • Innovation
  • Media centre
    • Image library
    • Press releases
    • Presentations
    • steelBlog
    • Member news
  • Steel topics
    • Environment
    • Life cycle thinking
    • Raw materials
    • Safety and health
    • Statistics
    • Steel markets
    • steeluniversity
    • Sustainability
    • Technology
  • Publications
    • All publications
    • Policy papers
    • Fact sheets
    • Statistics
    • Reports
Member extranet Data subscribers
Home > About steel > About steel > Steelmaking

The steelmaking process

Download PDF version

'Click on the stars for more information'

1
Input raw material

The range of input values differ according to route

Iron ore

Limestone

Coal

Scrap

Alternative fuels

Natural gas

2
Raw materials preparation
3
Ironmaking
4
Steelmaking

Two main routes

 

Now that the steel has been made, it is cast into three semi-finished shapes.

5
Semi-finished products

Slabs

Billets

Blooms

 

These three main products are then hot-rolled into a wide range of flat and long products.

6
Hot-rolled products

Flat Products

Plate

Coils

Long Products

Rebar

Bars

Wire rods

Welded/seamless tubes

Structural shapes

Rails

7
Finishing operations

Painting

Metal coating

Cold rolling

 
OUTPUT PRODUCTS
 

There is also a wide range of valuable co-products from the steelmaking process which are sold to other industries.

8
Co-products and their uses

Slag

Cement for road construction

Fertilisers and soil improvement

Paving stones for hydraulic engineering

Sea forestation

Dust and sludge

Internal and external use of iron and alloying elements

Chemicals

Use as input material for the chemical industry

Emulsions and used oils

Internal use as reducing agents

Process gases

Heat and electricity

Carbon capture and utilisation

9
Steel applications

Wind turbines

Packaging

Motor vehicles

Bridges

White goods

Rail tracks and trains

Pipes

Buildings and factories

Ships and containers

Machinery

Medical equipment

Metal products

Solar panels

Furniture

Electrical steels

Please note: This diagram aims to show steelmaking today. This diagram does not feature the new input materials and processes that are being developed and will dramatically change how we make steel in the next 30 years as we transition to the low carbon economy.

world steel association

World Steel Association AISBL
Registered office:
Avenue de Tervueren 270 – 1150 Brussels – Belgium
T: +32 2 702 89 00 – F: +32 2 702 88 99 – E: steel@worldsteel.org

Beijing office
C413 Office Building – Beijing Lufthansa Center – 50 Liangmaqiao Road
Chaoyang District – Beijing 100125 – China
T: +86 10 6464 6733 – F: +86 10 6468 0728 – E: china@worldsteel.org

© 2023 worldsteel | Terms of use | Privacy policy | Cookie policy | Sales policy | Sitemap | VAT Number BE 0406.597.373
constructsteel.org | worldautosteel.org | steeluniversity.org | worldstainless.org
worldsteel news

Sign up to receive our e-newsletter.
You can easily unsubscribe at any time.