Materials: Properties & Steel Manufacturing is one of 9 topics in the Grade 11 Mechanical Technology CAPS syllabus, covered across 3 lessons on Study Vault. Below are real practice questions from this topic with full worked answers.
Sample practice questions
Easy
1. What is the blast furnace primarily used for?
Refining iron ore into pig iron
Converting pig iron directly into finished steel products
Recycling scrap steel using an electric arc
Measuring the hardness of steel
Answer: Refining iron ore into pig iron — The blast furnace refines iron ore into pig iron using coke and limestone with a blast of hot air, producing a high-carbon, high-impurity raw iron.
Easy
2. What does the Bessemer converter do to pig iron to help convert it into steel?
Blows air or oxygen through the molten pig iron to burn off excess carbon and impurities
Melts scrap steel using an electric arc
Cools the pig iron very slowly over several days
Adds carbon to the pig iron to increase its hardness
Answer: Blows air or oxygen through the molten pig iron to burn off excess carbon and impurities — The Bessemer converter blows air or oxygen through molten pig iron, and the oxygen reacts with and burns off excess carbon and impurities, reducing carbon content to steel-making levels.
Medium
3. Name the steelmaking equipment that uses an electric arc between carbon electrodes and a metal charge, and can use scrap steel as its main input.
Answer: electric arc furnace — The electric arc furnace melts a metal charge (which can be scrap steel) using an electric arc between carbon electrodes, playing an important role in steel recycling.
