A Wonderleaf question
How is steel made strong?
a real page from the book
Steel becomes strong when iron is mixed with a careful amount of carbon and sometimes other elements, then heated and cooled in controlled ways. Those changes make the tiny crystals inside the metal harder to slide past one another.
The surprising detail is that too much hardness can be a problem. Steelmakers may cool hot steel quickly to make it very hard, then warm it again more gently so it stays tough instead of snapping easily.
Wonder words
- furnace
- carbon
- crystal
- martensite
Try it out
Bend a paperclip once, then compare it with a spoon handle and talk about why different metals need different strengths.
Read the whole picture book
Watercolour scenes, straight answers, about three minutes cover to cover.
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