304L austenitic stainless steel is a low carbon version of 304 and is melted as AOD, AOD + VAR, or VIM + VAR melt type. This grade offers a good combination of strength, corrosion resistance, and fabricability. The low carbon helps improve weldability as compared to the 304 as well as improved corrosion resistance. This alloy is one of the most widely used stainless steels showing up in just about every industry.

The chemical composition is given as % by mass.

304L Stainless Steel Mechanical Properties

304L grade has slightly lower mechanical properties than the standard 304 grade, this means that 304L stainless steel is weaker than the standard 304 alloys, but it is still widely used in many applications, It can be used at low temperatures down to -196 °C/384.8 °F even in welded structures. Moderate strengths can be reached at elevated temperatures (~550 °C/1022 °F). Temperatures for excessive scaling are close to 850 °C/1562 °F.

304L Stainless Steel Equivalent Grades

304L Stainless Steel Physical Properties

Physical properties according to EN 10088 are given in the table below.

304L Stainless Steel Forms

• Sheet
• Strip
• Bar
• Plate
• Pipe
• Tube
• Coil
• Fittings