Stainless steel

ATTENTION: we do not sell stainless steel elements separately! The product is available only as a possible component for our products.

INOX steel is a material that we encounter increasingly often in our lives. The word INOX comes from the word "inoxydable", which means stainless, and the German term »rostfrei« is also used. Compared to ordinary steels, INOX has many advantages. Corrosion resistance is one of the main ones. Another is its aesthetic appearance, since stainless steel can be processed to such a degree that no additional protection in the form of painting is needed. It has high heat resistance and low maintenance costs. Stainless steel materials can be completely recycled. They are biologically neutral and can be reprocessed. A disadvantage is the price, which is approximately 3x higher than that of ordinary steels. In the long term, however, the cost is lower, as a product made from stainless material is more durable and practically maintenance-free. With an appropriate ratio of alloying additives, stainless steel materials are also resistant to acids and alkalis.

INOX steels or stainless steels are alloys with at least 50% iron content. Such a stainless alloy does not rust even after prolonged contact with water (or in humid air). Resistance to rusting is mainly provided by chromium, which forms a thin protective layer on the surface of the alloy. An alloy acquires the properties of stainless steel, or INOX material, when it contains at least 11–12% chromium in the solid alloy. At this ratio, the alloy gains the properties of stainless steel that is resistant to atmospheric influences. In addition to chromium, nickel is also important for INOX materials, as it further increases corrosion resistance, as does molybdenum, which increases resistance to pitting corrosion. Titanium, niobium, zirconium, and tantalum are used as stabilizers.