Steel casting is a specialized form of casting

Casting

In metalworking, casting involves pouring liquid metal into a mold, which contains a hollow cavity of the desired shape, and then allowing it to cool and solidify. The solidified part is also known as a casting, which is ejected or broken out of the mold to complete the process...

 involving various types of steel

Steel

Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...

. Steel castings are used when cast iron

Cast iron

Cast iron is derived from pig iron, and while it usually refers to gray iron, it also identifies a large group of ferrous alloys which solidify with a eutectic. The color of a fractured surface can be used to identify an alloy. White cast iron is named after its white surface when fractured, due...

s cannot deliver enough strength or shock resistance.

Examples of items that are steel castings include: hydroelectric turbine wheels

Water turbine

A water turbine is a rotary engine that takes energy from moving water.Water turbines were developed in the 19th century and were widely used for industrial power prior to electrical grids. Now they are mostly used for electric power generation. They harness a clean and renewable energy...

, forging presses, gear

Gear

A gear is a rotating machine part having cut teeth, or cogs, which mesh with another toothed part in order to transmit torque. Two or more gears working in tandem are called a transmission and can produce a mechanical advantage through a gear ratio and thus may be considered a simple machine....

s, railroad truck frames

Bogie

A bogie is a wheeled wagon or trolley. In mechanics terms, a bogie is a chassis or framework carrying wheels, attached to a vehicle. It can be fixed in place, as on a cargo truck, mounted on a swivel, as on a railway carriage/car or locomotive, or sprung as in the suspension of a caterpillar...

, valve

Valve

A valve is a device that regulates, directs or controls the flow of a fluid by opening, closing, or partially obstructing various passageways. Valves are technically pipe fittings, but are usually discussed as a separate category...

 bodies, pump

Pump

A pump is a device used to move fluids, such as liquids, gases or slurries.A pump displaces a volume by physical or mechanical action. Pumps fall into three major groups: direct lift, displacement, and gravity pumps...

 casings, mining

Mining

Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...

 machinery, marine

Ship

Since the end of the age of sail a ship has been any large buoyant marine vessel. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size and cargo or passenger capacity. Ships are used on lakes, seas, and rivers for a variety of activities, such as the transport of people or goods, fishing,...

 equipment

Machine

A machine manages power to accomplish a task, examples include, a mechanical system, a computing system, an electronic system, and a molecular machine. In common usage, the meaning is that of a device having parts that perform or assist in performing any type of work...

, and engine casings

Cylinder block

A cylinder block is an integrated structure comprising the cylinder of a reciprocating engine and often some or all of their associated surrounding structures...

.

Steel castings are categorized into two general groups: carbon steels and alloy steels.

Steel casting alloys

Alloy steel castings are broken down into two categories: low-alloy steels and high-alloy steels. Low-alloy steels contain less than 8% alloying content and high-alloy steels have 8% or more.

This is a table of some steel casting alloys:

Heat resistant steel castings per ASTM A297-1981

Grade	Nominal alloy composition [%wt]	Tensile strength, minimum		0.2% Yield strength, minimum		% Elongation in 2 in., minimum
		ksi	MPa	ksi	MPa
HC	28 Cr	55	380	-	-	-
HD	28 Cr, 5 Ni	75	515	35	240	8
HF	19 Cr, 9 Ni	70	485	35	240	25
HH	25 Cr, 12 Ni	75	515	35	240	10
HI	28 Cr, 15 Ni	70	485	35	240	10
HK	25 Cr, 20 Ni	65	450	35	240	10
HL	29 Cr, 20 Ni	65	450	35	240	10
HN	20 Cr, 25 Ni	63	435	-	-	8
HP	26 Cr, 35 Ni	62.5	430	34	235	4.5
HT	15 Cr, 35 Ni	65	450	-	-	4
HU	19 Cr, 39 Ni	65	450	-	-	4
HW	12 Cr, 60 Ni	60	415	-	-	-
HX	17 Cr, 66 Ni	60	415	-	-	-

Corrosion resistant steel castings per ASTM A743-1981a

Grade	Nominal alloy composition [%wt]	Tensile strength, minimum		0.2% Yield strength, minimum		% Elongation in 2 in., minimum
		ksi	MPa	ksi	MPa
CF-8	9 Cr, 9 Ni	70	485	30	205	35
CG-12	22 Cr, 12 Ni	70	485	28	195	35
CF-20	19 Cr, 9 Ni	70	485	30	205	30
CF-8M	19 Cr, 10 Ni, with Mo	70	485	30	205	30
CF-8C	19 Cr, 10 Ni, with Nb	70	485	30	205	30
CF-16 & CF-16Fa	19 Cr, 9 Ni, free machining	70	485	30	205	25
CH-10 & CH-20	25 Cr, 12 Ni	70	485	30	205	30
CK-20	25 Cr, 20 Ni	65	450	28	195	30
CE-30	29 Cr, 9 Ni	80	550	40	275	10
CA-15 & CA-15M	12 Cr	90	620	65	450	18
CB-30	20 Cr	65	450	30	205	-
CC-50	28 Cr	55	380	-	-	-
CA-40	12 Cr	100	690	70	485	15
CF-3	19 Cr, 9 Ni	70	485	30	205	35
CF-3M	19 Cr, 10 Ni, with Mo	70	485	30	205	30
CG6MMN	Cr-Ni-Mn-Mo	75	515	35	240	30
CG-8M	19 Cr, 11 Ni, with Mo	75	520	35	240	25
CN-7M	20 Cr, 29 Ni, with Co & Mo	62	425	25	170	35
CN-7MS	19 Cr, 24 Ni, with Co & Mo	70	485	30	205	35
CW-12M	Ni, Mo & Cr	72	495	46	315	4
CY-40	Ni, Cr & Fe	70	485	28	195	30
CA-6NM	12 Cr, 4 Ni	110	775	80	550	15
CD-4MCu	25 Cr, 5 Ni, 3 Cu, 2 Mo	100	690	70	485	16
CA-6N	11 Cr, 7 Ni	140	965	135	930	15