Without steel, the world would be a different place. Practically all modern industries, from agriculture to construction to auto manufacturing use this durable and inexpensive alloy. To give you an idea of just how influential steel has been, here is a brief history of its use.

Ancient Times

Archeological excavations of pieces of ironware have dated steel to as far back as the start of the iron age, around 3,500 years ago. Blacksmiths in the 13th century BC found that iron became stronger after being exposed to the carbon in coal furnaces for an extended period. Empires all over the world started using this alloy for their weapons. In India, wootz steel, characterized by swirling patterns and sought-after for its toughness, was produced by craftsmen using crucibles.

Middle Ages

In the 3rd century, China was the first country to mass-produce high-quality steel, using air blown through the molten iron to remove impurities, long before Englishman Henry Bessemer patented this process in 1856. The Middle East, meanwhile, was developing the world-renowned Damascus steel using ingots of wootz steel. A century later, Sri Lanka became the world’s top supplier of crucible steel.

Modern Era

The industrial age saw even higher demand for steel, which was used for rapid development—from railroad tracks and trains that made transportation easy to agricultural machines that made farming much more efficient. Production became much faster with the invention of steel rollers in 1783. When automobiles became popular at the beginning of the 20th century, steel was the preferred material for most of its parts. In fact, today’s cars contain an average of 2,400 pounds of steel.

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