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About Stainless Steel Tubing

Stainless steel tubing is hollow, cylindrical metal used as equipment components or as the medium through which fluids pass. Stainless steel tubing manufacturers employ welding or seamless tubing procedures. Welding involves roll forming stainless steel and connecting the formed portions along a seam through fusion. Seamless steel tubing involves the creation of stainless steel tubing through piercing a round blank. Welding achieves a higher degree of precision without secondary operations. The degree of precision required of the stainless steel tubing manufacturers depends on the industrial application. Metal spinning is a “cold worked” metal fabrication technique which is similar to a potter forming clay, except a metal spinner uses a flat round disc of sheet metal which is rotating on a spinning lathe. The metal spinning process is limited, however, to the making of concentric shapes, such as tubes.

Stainless steel tubing manufacturers service the medical, dental, automotive, petrochemical and semiconductor industries, to name a few. Stainless steel tubing is used in applications ranging from medical instruments and dental implants to hydraulic systems, fuel lines and engine conduits. The paper and pulp industry has become increasingly reliant on stainless steel piping and tubing because of the corrosive and aggressive fluids used in the process of paper making.

Another common way of referring to metal tubing is pipe. All pipe is tubing and is mostly distinguished by the manner of its specification, in which standardized values are used instead of actual measurements to identify the outside diameter and wall thickness. Stainless steel tubing, however, is denoted by outside diameter. Piping is used mainly for the transmission of water or gas and used almost exclusively in the plumbing and pipefitting industries. Tubes are more diverse in their implementations.

The use of stainless steel in the production of tubes, as well as pipes and bars, is due to the advantageous properties of stainless steel. It is the most common material used in the manufacturing of tubing. Stainless steel tubing provides excellent corrosion resistance, is easy to clean, requires low maintenance and is cost-effective in the long-run. Even though stainless steel may require a higher initial cost than other metals, maintenance and replacement costs are lower. Stainless steel tubing is cheaper than titanium, a metal with similar uses including medical applications.

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Types of Stainless Steel Tubing

• Hypodermic needles are medical instruments that use stainless steel tubing to move fluids.
  
• Medical tubing is often made from stainless steel because of its hygienic nature. Medical tubing is also used in the production of instruments and implants for the medical industry.
  
• Nickel tubing is a common type of tubing. Nickel is often used in combination with copper in many applications, including those in the marine industry that involve moderate exposure to chlorine, to which nickel-copper alloys is resistant.
  
• Small diameter tubing is used in equipment found in medical and dental applications, including those used in minimally invasive procedures. Capillary tubing, for example, measures less than or equal to 0.188 inches in outside diameter.
  
• Square stainless steel tubing is used in applications in which traditional round or oval stainless tubes are not acceptable. Such applications include industrial mounts and frames.
  
• Stainless steel bars of different shapes are utilized in the construction and transportation industries because of the bars’ high strength and low maintenance requirements. Stainless bars and rods provide excellent structural support and reinforcement.
  
• Stainless steel pipes are used in applications involving corrosive fluids, high temperatures and high contaminant levels because of the great corrosion resistance of stainless steel pipes. Industries in which stainless steel pipes are popular include the oil/gas, pulp and paper and water/wastewater industries.
  
• Stainless steel tubes are hollow cylinders made of stainless steel that are often used for the transportation of liquids and gases.
  
• Stainless tubing refers to the hollow cylinders in equipment through which fluid passes.
  
• Syringes are small, hollow tubes used for injecting or withdrawing fluids for medical purposes.
  
• Thin wall tubing consists of extremely thin stainless tubing, the walls of which usually measure 0.12 inches or thinner. Despite its thinness, thin wall tubing still provides insulation and strength and is commonly used in medical and aerospace applications.