QSTE...
hot-rolled high strength cold forming
sheet steel as per
EN 10 149
QStE – hot-rolled high All manufactured steel sheets have to meet the
parameters given as per the EN 10 149-2
strength cold forming sheet standard. QStE class steels (hot-rolled) are
steel manufactured from the thickness of 2mm to
12mm in the form of slid strips or cut-to-length
sheets.
Steels labelled QStE are a class of fine
grain micro-alloyed thermo-mechanically rolled Utilisation
(TM) steels. They are suitable for cold forming There are various applications of QStE
due to their high strength. class steels. They have been used for:
• outrigger crane arms
The labelling of these steels can differ with • jib arms
different producers (Table 1). They can be • chassis constructions
labelled as ALFORM355M to ALFORM650M, • containers
S355MC to S700MC, RAEX355MC OPTIM to • agriculture machinery etc.
RAEX 700MC OPTIM, DOMEX355MC to
DOMEX700MC, YMPRESS E355 to
YMPRESSE690, KODUR355 to KODUR550,
etc. Each are labelled respective to Re yield
strengths.
The advantage of QStE steels is very little
use of alloying elements in the manufacturing
process (especially S and F), and this has a
Grades of QStE class steels are labelled
positive effect on:
with three digits, expressing the value of the
- a significantly lower carbon equivalent
minimal yield strength (Re) measured
(CEV>0,39), resulting in the improvement of steel
perpendicularly to the direction of rolling. These
weldability
range from 380MPa to 690MPa according to the
- excellent formability, even when it has to be
EN 10 149-2 standard. See Table 2.
bent to tight radii and high steel strength
- high KV impact strength in low temperatures
All the mechanical
- suitable for laser cutting
characteristics which result
in QStE class steels as
better and higher quality Advantages of usage
when compared with - less weight
common grade steels, are - easier weldability
generated due to thermo- - simplified manufacturing
mechanical rolling, the - robust design
addition of micro-alloying elements (Nb, V, Ti), - less environmental burden
and a very precise setting of rolling parameters. - competitive edge
See Chemical composition table (Table 3). - economical efficiency
Benefits sheet can be bent to tight radii without cracking,
When using higher or the highest grade of regardless of the direction of rolling (Table 4).
QStE steels, specifically QStE690TM, the
following benefits can be attained in comparison
with QStE380TM steel sheets: Shearing
QStE steels are well suited to cutting. There
● with the same thickness of material, the new is a rule that the highest tensile strength is, the
design can higher the power needed for cutting the material.
be as much
a s 2 x N a t u r a l l y, w i t h
stronger; i.e. increasing tensile
it can bear strength, tool wear
2 x t h e increases. Cutters
weight, or it should be robust and
can endure
2x the load, sharp, blades should
etc. be slightly curved for
cutting, and there are
2 important parameters – shear gap ∆l and the
● while preserving the same construction
angle of the tool face. See Table 5.
strength, a thinner steel sheet can be used,
resulting in
a decrease Cutting
of the Laser cutting is a well
weight of suited cutting technique
the for QStE steels and due
construction to their chemical
by 25%, and composition no special
resulting in parameters are required.
many positive changes in the designing of new Plasma cutting can be
steel constructions used without any
limitations.
● for QStE steels, excellent cold forming is typical,
even when bent to
tight radii,
and this can Machining
be a decisive QSTE steels are, thanks to their chemical
feature for composition, with some alloying elements
the design workable at all grades. In the lower grades
applications s p e c i f i c a l l y, Q S t E 3 8 0 T M , m a c h i n i n g
of materials characteristics/ are
aiming at identical to S235 and S355
economical common steel grades. In
efficiency, demanding labour input, and static the highest QStE690TM
characteristics of the product. grades, high speed cutting
tools (HSS) must be used
Bending for a smooth penetration
QStE steels run of the tool into the
combine high material. Specifically
strength with good during drilling, threading,
bendability. Due to milling, etc., it is not necessary to adjust the speed
lower carbon and of revolutions or advancement. They can be
sulphur contents the machined as any common material.
Tolerances
All grades of QStE steels are manufactured as well – e.g. when
in accordance with EN 10 051, which specifies welding in lightly
the tolerances on material thickness, dimensions stressed areas or when
and flatness. All materials are supplied with a welding high strength
certificate of the trials of the material mechanical steel to mild steel. For
parameters as per EN 10 204, 3.1B. more precise
information on
matching filler metals
Welding see the Table below.
The weldability of QStE steels is excellent
even in the highest grades (QStE690 TM) due to
their chemical composition, and all methods of
welding can be used. Due to their low content of
alloying elements, the steels are not susceptible
to hot or cold cracking and therefore no
preheating of the steel is necessary. Matching
filler metals result in producing a weld that is as
strong as the steel itself. Under-matched filler
metals can be used
Weld
metal Filler metals (AWS classes)
RP
[MPa]
MMA SAW MIG/MAG FCAW
Manual arc welding Flux core wire welding Protective atmosphere wire welding Special wire welding
AWS A5.23 F11AXEX AWS A5.28 ER 110S AWS A5.29 E 11XT
690
AWS A5.5 E 11018
AWS A5.5 E 11018 AWS A5.23 F10AXEX AWS A5.28 ER 100S AWS A5.29 E10XT
550
AWS A5.5 E 9018 AWS A5.23 F9AXEX AWS A5.28 ER 90S AWS A5.29 E9XT
AWS A5.5 E 8018 AWS A5.23 F8AXEX AWS A5.28 ER 80S AWS A5.29 E 8XT
500
AWS A5.5 E 8016 AWS A5.23 F7AXEX
AWS A5.5 E 7028 AWS A5.17 F7AXEX AWS A5.18 ER 70S AWS A5.20 E 7XT
460
AWS A5.5 E 7018
AWS A5.1 E 7016 AWS A5.17 F7AXEX AWS A5.18 ER 70S AWS A5.20 E 7XT
380
AWS A5.1
QSTE460TM
QStE380TM
QStE500TM
QStE550TM
QStE690TM
Recommended strength of weld metal
for abutting joint in cases where high weight-carrying
capacity crosswise to the weld joint is required
Strength of weld metal
for other welded joints
Table 1 Comparison of steel labelling
Comparison of steel labelling by different manufacturers
SEW 0921 EN 10 149 2 EN 10 149 2 EN 10 149 2 EN 10 149 2 EN 10 149 2
QStE 380 TM ALFORM 355M S355MC RAEX 355 MC OPTIM DOMEX 355 MC -
QStE 460 TM ALFORM 460M S460MC RAEX 460 MC OPTIM DOMEX 460 MC -
QStE 500 TM ALFORM 500M S500MC RAEX 500 MC OPTIM DOMEX 500 MC CORUS RQT 501
QStE 550 TM ALFORM 550M S550MC RAEX 550 MC OPTIM DOMEX 550 MC CORUS RQT 601
QStE 690 TM ALFORM 700M S700MC RAEX 700 MC OPTIM DOMEX 700 MC CORUS RQT 701
1) Re is measured crosswise to rolling direction.
2) Re is measured length-wise to rolling direction.
Table 2 Selected values of typical mechanical properties as per EN 10 149-2
Mechanical properties
Re Rm A5 KV
Grade
[MPa] [MPa] [%] [°C] [ J]
QStE 380 TM 355 430 – 550 23 -40 40
QStE 460 TM 460 520 – 670 17 -40 40
QStE 500 TM 500 550 – 700 14 -40 27
QStE 550 TM 550 600 – 760 14 -40 27
QStE 690 TM 700 750 – 950 12 -40 27
Table 3 Typical values of chemical composition as per EN 10 149-2
Chemical composition
C Mn Si P S Al Nb V Ti Mo B
Grade
[%] [%] [%] [%] [%] [%] [%] [%] [%] [%] [%]
QStE 380 TM 0,12 1,5 0,5 0,025 0,02 0,015 0,09 0,2 0,15 - -
QStE 460 TM 0,12 1,6 0,5 0,025 0,015 0,015 0,09 0,2 0,15 - -
QStE 500 TM 0,12 1,7 0,5 0,025 0,015 0,015 0,09 0,2 0,15 - -
QStE 550 TM 0,12 1,8 0,5 0,025 0,015 0,015 0,09 0,2 0,15 - -
QStE 690 TM 0,12 2,1 0,6 0,025 0,015 0,015 0,09 0,2 0,22 0,5 0,005
Table 4 Bending as per EN 10 149-2
Material bending
min. R of the bend
Grade
h < 3mm h = 3 – 6mm h > 6mm
QStE 380 TM 0,25 x h 0,5 x h 1,0 x h
QStE 460 TM 0,5 x h 1,0 x h 1,5 x h
QStE 500 TM 1,0 x h 1,5 x h 2,0 x h
QStE 550 TM 1,0 x h 1,5 x h 2,0 x h
QStE 690 TM 1,5 x h 2,0 x h 2,5 x h
* some materials have min. radius of the bend by 50% smaller
Table 5 Shearing parameters
Shearing parameters
Grade shear gap ∆l the angle of the tool face
[%t] [°]
QStE 380 TM 7–9 1–4
QStE 460 TM 7–9 1–4
QStE 500 TM 7–9 1–4
QStE 550 TM 8 – 11 2–4
QStE 690 TM 11 – 14 2–4
Senica
Trstín
Hlohovec
Bratislava Bratislava
Senec Žilina
Nitra
WINFA, s.r.o.
Skladová 2/A
917 00 TRNAVA
Slovak Republic
Trstínska cesta
917 00 TRNAVA
tel: +421 33 / 53 43 411
53 43 414
53 43 420
fax: +421 33 / 53 43 413
web: www.winfa.sk
e-mail: [email protected]
