What method is widely used to produce materials with specific properties, such as stainless steel?

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An alloy is a material with metallic properties obtained by combining several elements, including at least one metal. The added elements may themselves be metallic or non-metallic. Steel, for example, is mostly iron and a small amount of carbon, which is not a metal. Stainless steel also contains enough chromium to form a protective layer rich in chromium oxide on its surface; nickel, molybdenum or other elements can also modify its properties. The composition and heat treatments thus make it possible to adjust resistance, hardness, ductility and corrosion resistance. Alloys thus make it possible to combine qualities that a pure metal does not simultaneously possess.