In the iron and steel industry as alloy agent to join nb in stainless steel and heat resistant steel, stainless steel and add in the heat resistant steel join niobium, to improve the plasticity and resistance to corrosion, structural steel with
niobium, can improve the welding performance, and improve the strength and plasticity, and prevent weld corrosion. For high temperature steel and high temperature alloy for, niobium is indispensable, because niobium can improve the high temperature strength, fine grains, prevent heat grain growth. Niobium and carbon combined into carbide, which can eliminate the carbonization chromium deposition in the stainless steel to the harmful action to improve the corrosion resistance. Pure niobium and its alloy used in electronic, chemical, light industry, aircraft, and the rockets manufacturing and other technology. Niobium iron is the steel and iron the "monosodium glutamate", when in steelmaking addition of suitable amount of niobium iron, it will greatly improve the strength of steel, toughness, weldability and corrosion resistance.
In 1990, China's consumption less than 50 tons of iron niobium, 2001 years has increased to 1250 tons, including niobium production of more than 2 million tons of steel. In recent 10 years, China's steel enterprises use Brazil's niobium iron to produce nearly 10 million tons of high strength niobium alloy steel. Now, in China, many big in engineering construction projects are already widely use of domestic high strength steel with niobium, such as the gas to the project, the huangpu river and the Yangtze river bridge over the river construction, highway and the Yangtze river three gorges hydropower station the and so on.
