{"id":2134,"date":"2022-07-24T12:53:24","date_gmt":"2022-07-24T07:23:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ambicasteels.com\/blog\/?p=2134"},"modified":"2024-01-12T12:54:27","modified_gmt":"2024-01-12T07:24:27","slug":"204-vs-304-stainless-steel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ambicasteels.com\/blog\/204-vs-304-stainless-steel\/","title":{"rendered":"What is the Difference between 204 and 304 Stainless Steel"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Austenitic stainless steel<\/strong> <\/a>is admired for grades used in common high-fidelity applications. These are iron-based amalgamations with 16-25% of chromium with other alloying agents. Chromium and molybdenum protect austenitic grade from general and pitting corrosion. Nickel strengthens and stabilizes its austenite structure with manganese and nitrogen.<\/p>\n

Austenitic grades are non-magnetic in nature and pose excellent weldability ad formability<\/strong>. These grades can be successfully used in cryogenic applications and even in the red hot temperature of furnace and heat-exchangers. The strength, durability, visual appeal, easy maintenance, and contribution towards a sustainable environment are some added perks to its applications.<\/p>\n

Grade 204 and 304 are popular austenitic grades<\/strong> with face-centered microstructure and maintain their niche of applications and differences. The major difference is the distribution of elements in chemistry.<\/p>\n

Difference between grades 204 and 304<\/u><\/strong><\/h1>\n

The chemical compositions define attribution, mechanical and physical parameters. Here, the key component is nickel. Grade 304<\/strong> contains 18-20 % of chromium and 8-10% of nickel. On the other hand, grade 204 contains 18% chromium and 0.5% of nickel. The significant difference is nickel content is vast relatively. One more differentiation is created by manganese. Grade 304 has a manganese content of 2%, and grade 204 has 5% of manganese by weight.<\/strong> As a result, the corrosion resistance, strength, price, use differs for both grades.<\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n\n\n
Grade<\/td>\nCarbon<\/p>\n

(max)%<\/td>\n

Manganese<\/p>\n

(max)%<\/td>\n

Silicon<\/p>\n

(max)%<\/td>\n

Phosphorus<\/p>\n

(max)%<\/td>\n

Sulfur<\/p>\n

(max)%<\/td>\n

Chromium<\/p>\n

(max)%<\/td>\n

Nickel<\/p>\n

(max)%<\/td>\n

Nitrogen<\/p>\n

(max)%<\/td>\n

Molybdenum<\/p>\n

(max)%<\/td>\n

Copper<\/p>\n

(max)%<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

304<\/td>\n0.08<\/td>\n2.0<\/td>\n0.75<\/td>\n0.045<\/td>\n0.030<\/td>\n18-20<\/td>\n8-10<\/td>\n0.10<\/td>\n\u00a0–<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
202<\/td>\n0.10<\/td>\n6-8<\/td>\n2.0<\/td>\n0.040<\/td>\n0.015<\/td>\n16-18%<\/td>\n2.0<\/td>\n–<\/td>\n1.0<\/td>\n2-3.5<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

How to identify grades 204 and 304? <\/u><\/h2>\n

Grade 204 and 304 are both austenitic stainless steel and non-magnetic in nature.\u00a0 Grade 304 has considerably superior corrosion resistance when exposed to saltwater, compared to grade 204. In the spark test, grade 204 produces yellow-red sparks, whereas grade 304 will produce more reddish sparks with fast speed. Other differences can be obtained with magnetic spots and laboratory tests.<\/p>\n

Corrosion resistance (Grade 204 versus 304)<\/u><\/h3>\n

Grade 204<\/strong> produces weakened corrosion resistance when compared to grade 304. But it does not mean it is not corrosion-resistant at all.\u00a0 Grade 204<\/strong> performs well in general or less corrosive mediums. Its chemistry does not hold good for chloride environments. Grade 204<\/strong> is an economical option with compromised corrosion resistance.<\/p>\n

Grade 304<\/strong> has more nickel in its compound and produces excellent corrosion resistance and strength. Its applications cover kitchen utensils to power generation equipment.<\/p>\n

Cost difference<\/u><\/h3>\n

Nickel is an essential commodity with volatile prices. It is expensive in nature. 304 Stainless steel<\/strong><\/a> contains a significant amount of nickel when compared to grade 204. So, grade 304<\/strong> automatically becomes an expensive material. But this cost comes with numerous advantages and practical applications.<\/p>\n

Inferentially, grade 204<\/strong> is an economical option and is used in indoor applications. Grade 304<\/strong> is a popular and cost-effective stainless steel with excellent corrosion resistance and strength with an expansive range of applications.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Austenitic stainless steel is admired for grades used in common high-fidelity applications. These are iron-based amalgamations with 16-25% of chromium with other alloying agents. Chromium and molybdenum protect austenitic grade from general and pitting corrosion. Nickel strengthens and stabilizes its… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2254,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[123],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2134","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-frequently-asked-question-faq"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ambicasteels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2134","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ambicasteels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ambicasteels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ambicasteels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ambicasteels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2134"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.ambicasteels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2134\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2299,"href":"https:\/\/www.ambicasteels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2134\/revisions\/2299"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ambicasteels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2254"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ambicasteels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2134"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ambicasteels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2134"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ambicasteels.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2134"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}