Harry Brearley Created Rustless Steel

In 1913, English metallurgist Harry Brearley was testing chromium steels in Sheffield to make gun barrels resist heat erosion. On August 13, he prepared an alloy which contained 12.8 per cent chromium and found that it resisted nitric acid, vinegar, and lemon juice. Brearley referred to his invention as "rustless steel", but local cutlery maker Ernest Stuart suggested the name "stainless steel". The alloy made it possible to mass produce cheap cutlery and proved later to be one of the most widely used materials in the world.

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