If you ask someone 'Is stainless steel magnetic?' you may get various answers. Some people believe that stainless steel is a completely non magnetic material. Others believe that stainless steel must be magnetic because it contains iron.
So, do magnets work on stainless steel? Yes and no. Like most things in life, the answer lies in the gray zone, in the dark zone between the two. In fact, there are many types of stainless steel alloys, each with magnetic and non magnetic variants. There is no correlation between magnetism and corrosion resistance.
We can determine whether a piece of stainless steel has magnetism by observing its chemical composition.
When alloying, the ferrite and iron crystal structure endow stainless steel with magnetism. High levels of austenite counteract ferrite, making these stainless steel alloys non magnetic. Even in these cases, non magnetic grades become magnetic once processed (i.e. bent, deep drawn, or formed into tubes).
Some stainless steel alloys obtain partial magnetism after forming or heat treatment.
Then there is a type of stainless steel that has strong corrosion resistance and carries magnetic fields (such as 420 and 430 grades). The reverse is also true - some are corrosion-resistant but not magnetic (such as 316).
According to your requirements, certain types of stainless steel are more suitable for specific applications than others.
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