The secret to stopping rust is to prevent oxygen from forming bonds with iron. The best way to do this is to get something else to bind with the iron first. After many experiments, it was discovered that by adding up to 10% of chromium to mild steel you get a new alloy that doesn’t rust–stainless. Chromium provides the shiny surface to the product and makes it rust proof and nickel provides the ductility to it. This innovation, took place in Sheffield, England in the 1930's, giving that city its reputation for making some of the finest cutlery in the world.
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Stainless steel is tougher than mild steel in many applications and it also resists the corrosive effects of water and many other chemicals. Now, metallurgists play with different trace additives like manganese, copper and nickel to get stronger steels that are still rust-free.
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Stainless steel has been used with phenomenal success in various industries for over 70 years. More applications are being discovered with every passing year as its advantages become more widely identified.
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With an increase in demand, production has increased making it more affordable than ever. Increased demand results in availability in standard as well as non-standard sizes.