Guide to T-304 & T-316 Stainless Steel Metal Wire Mesh

Boasting unmatched strength, resilience, and versatility, stainless steel wire mesh is a critical material for countless industrial applications. The metal itself has myriad specifications and grades, the most common being types 304 (T-304) and 316 (T-316).

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What's the difference between the two, and how do you know which is best for your needs? Read on for insight.

T-304 vs. T-316 Stainless Steel Alloys

Before diving deeper into the differences in these materials, it’s important to understand what an alloy is. An alloy is a metal combined with other elements to create a material not found in nature. For instance, when pure silver is combined with a small amount of copper, the result is sterling silver.

Steel is created by adding chromium to iron, and the stainless variety typically contains a small amount of nickel. The exact percentages of each element determine the grade of the metal.

Stainless steel wire mesh products are used in everything from aerospace and agriculture to mining and machinery. While there's a multitude of variations, T-304 and T-316 are the most widely used.

T-304 is essentially the standard version, and T-316 is premium. Though these alloys look nearly identical to the untrained eye, they're notably different in terms of their durability and resistance to heat and corrosion.

What Is T-304 Stainless Steel?

Type 304 stainless steel is an alloy containing 18% chromium and 8% nickel. In addition to being affordable and supremely versatile, there are many advantages to using the material.

T-304 wire mesh products are:

• Heat-resistant in temperatures as high as 1600 °F

• Non-magnetic

• Operational in sub-zero temperatures

• Resistant to corrosion

• Unlikely to oxidize

This type of wire mesh is widely available and comes in a broad range of sizes, wire diameters, and weaves.

T-304 Stainless Steel Metal Mesh Applications & Industries

Many industries rely on T-304 steel hardware cloth, including mining, food production, water filtration, automotive, aerospace, manufacturing, construction, and refinery.

Industrial applications for T-304 include:

• Creation of moldings and trim

• Equipment tubing and piping

• Electrical enclosures

• Laboratory use

• Particle separation

• Screening abrasives and liquids

• Sieving

• Sorting powders and solid materials

• Storage tanks

T-304 is a go-to for various applications, so bear in mind this is by no means an exhaustive list.

What Is T-316 Stainless Steel?

Type 316 stainless steel is an alloy containing 16% chromium and 10% nickel, along with 2% of the chemical element molybdenum. While it's priced slightly higher than T-304, it's just as versatile with many notable benefits.

T-316 wire mesh products are:

• More resistant to corrosion than T-304

• Non-magnetic

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  Resilient in extreme temperatures

• Resilient in harsh environmental conditions

• Resistant to spot welding

• Suitable in marine environments

• Unlikely to oxidize

Thanks to the small amount of molybdenum, this type of stainless steel is typically recommended for highly corrosive marine environments where T-304 isn't as stable.

T-316 Stainless Steel Mesh Applications and Industries

Like T-304, several commercial sectors rely on T-316 stainless steel hardware cloth. This includes marine technology, food processing, manufacturing, automotive, shipbuilding, aerospace, and the pharmaceutical and medical industries.

Industrial applications for T-316 include:

• Boat fittings

• Chemical processing and storage

• Cisterns and piping

• Containing pressurized gasses or liquids

• Heavy welding

• Infrastructure

• Laboratory use

• Machinery

• Marine components

• Outdoor furnishings

• Particle separation

For more information into this material, check out our Stainless Steel Mesh Guide.

Where to Buy the Best Stainless Steel Industrial Mesh

Founded in Berkeley, California, in 1969, TWP Inc. has been a premier industrial wire mesh supplier for more than 60 years. Our woman-owned company carries woven and welded stainless steel sheets, panels, rolls, and laser-cut mesh discs, including a robust selection of T-304 and T-316 grades.

Expert services from TWP Inc. include laser cutting, roll slitting, disc sizing, measuring, and cleaning. We always have a wide variety of products in stock, but if you don't see exactly what you need, we're happy to accommodate custom sizes and quantities. Request a free quote to get started!

Want to discover more about what's trending in your industry? Connect with TWP Inc. on LinkedIn for the latest on wire mesh materials and applications.

There are several hundred grades of stainless with differing chemical compositions, but only about ten are in common use.

Most products in our range of stainless steel wire and stainless steel mesh products are offered in two grades – 304 and 316. The choice of grade is determined by the application and environment.

Both grades are termed “18-8” stainless steel, as they have approximately 18% chromium and 8% nickel in their composition. 18-8 stainless steels are non-magnetic and cannot be hardened by heat treatment.

The actual compositions of 304 and 316 grades are:

Element 304 316 Chromium 18% – 20% 16% – 18% Nickel 8% – 10.5% 10% – 14% Molybenum 0% 2% – 3% Carbon 0.08% max. 0.08% max. Silicon 1.0% max. 1.0% max. Manganese 2.0% max. 2.0% max. Phosphorus 0.045% max. 0.045% max. Sulphur 0.03% max. 0.03% max. Nitrogen 0.1% max. 0.1% max.

Stainless steels owe their corrosion resistance to a thin chromium oxide film on the surface, but other elements, such as molybdenum and nitrogen, can improve corrosion resistance.

There is a formula which can be used to rank the corrosion resistance of stainless steel grades. While it is not an absolute measurement of corrosion resistance, it is useful for comparing grades. The Pitting Resistance Equivalent (PRE) number is:

PRE = % Chromium + 3.3 x % Molybdenum + 16 x % Nitrogen

The higher the PRE, which, in practice, ranges from 10.5 to over 40, the higher the corrosion resistance.

304 grade stainless steel has a PRE of about 18 while for 316 grade the PRE is approximately 24.

So, which grade of stainless steel should I select?

The company is the world’s best stainless steel pre-crimp mesh supplier. We are your one-stop shop for all needs. Our staff are highly-specialized and will help you find the product you need.

• 304 grade is used in more than 50% of applications that specify a stainless steel. It resists most oxidising acids and is slightly stronger and more wear resistant than 316 grade.
• 316 grade withstands attacks by sodium and calcium brines, hypochlorite solutions, phosphoric acid and sulphurous acids. Due to its resistance to sea salt corrosion, it should always be specified for wires and meshes in external environments within 5km of a surf coast, or within 1km of sheltered coastal waters. It could be considered for applications further from such sea coasts, if;
  • the environment is high temperature and high humidity or
  • the location is sheltered from natural washing by rain or
  • the location is an urban polluted area