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georgecoffey OP t1_jac3lmb wrote

Reply to comment by Verence17 in eli5 What is the difference between Iron and Steel? by georgecoffey

This is why I am asking this, they are both alloys of iron and carbon, but is there an exact divide? Is it just some percentage everyone agrees on? Does each alloy get assigned to one group? And if they do, what defines what group they get assigned to?

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Verence17 t1_jac41rt wrote

The commonly used divide between pure iron and steel is around 0.02% carbon, between steel and cast iron is 2.14% of carbon. For more complex alloys, where there isn't just steel and carbon but a sizeable portion of other things, it can be complicated.

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