November 27, 2023
In daily life, many of the pots, shovels, rice spoons, chopsticks, drinking cups, etc. we use for cooking are made of stainless steel. So how much do you know about the materials of these products?
Friends who have purchased stainless steel tableware will find that there are four common types of stainless steel tableware - 304, 304L, 316 and 316L. What do these four types of stainless steel mean? Which tableware is better?
What we call stainless steel every day does not just refer to "rustless steel". Its full name is "stainless acid-resistant steel", which not only does not rust, but also resists acid corrosion. According to the ability to resist acid corrosion, many brands are divided into many. The four types we are going to talk about today are some of the many brands.
The so-called 304 or 316 are all American ASTM standard grades. Of course, they all have corresponding national brand names, but why don’t we talk about Chinese brand names? Because Chinese brands are too complicated, taking 304 stainless steel as an example, the Chinese brand is called "06Cr19Ni10".
The stainless steel we usually refer to is divided into food grade stainless steel and non-food grade stainless steel. Food-grade stainless steel mainly includes 304 stainless steel and 316 stainless steel. 316 stainless steel is a bit luxurious for food equipment because it is more expensive, but it has better functions.
304 stainless steel can withstand high temperatures of 800°C, but when we cook, the boiling temperature is only 100°C. When cooking and frying, the high oil temperature is generally 180 to 240°C, commonly known as 80% heat. It is also very safe below 800°C. Daily cooking food comes into contact with acid and alkali. The biggest feature of 304 stainless steel is acid and alkali resistance.
316 stainless steel products are more expensive and are generally found in medical, food, machinery, petroleum, etc. If conditions permit, 316 stainless steel is still a better choice.
