surface, and the iron never gets the opportunity to rust This chemical stability is bought at a price Stainless steel is more expensive than cast iron and carbon steel, and it’s an even poorer heat conductor The addition of large numbers of foreign atoms apparently interferes with electron movement by causing structural and electrical irregularities in the metal The transfer of heat in a stainless pan can be evened out by coating the underside of the pan with copper, or by inserting a copper or aluminum plate in the pan bottom, or by making the pan out of two or more layers, with a good conductor just under the surface Of course these refinements add further to the cost of the utensil Still, these hybrids are the closest thing we have to the ideal chemically inert but thermally responsive pan Tin Tin was probably first used in combination with copper to make the mechanically tougher alloy called bronze Today tin is generally found only as a nontoxic, unreactive lining in copper utensils This limited role is the result of two inconvenient properties: a low melting point, 450ºF/230ºC, that can be reached in some cooking procedures, and a softness that makes the metal very susceptible to wear The tin alloy called pewter, which used to contain some lead and now is made with 7% antimony and 2% copper, is not much used today ...Tin was probably first used in combination with copper to make the mechanically tougher alloy called bronze Today tin is generally found only as a nontoxic, unreactive lining in copper utensils This limited role is the result of two inconvenient properties: a low melting... This limited role is the result of two inconvenient properties: a low melting point, 450ºF/230ºC, that can be reached in some cooking procedures, and a softness that makes the metal very susceptible to wear The tin alloy called pewter, which used to contain... makes the metal very susceptible to wear The tin alloy called pewter, which used to contain some lead and now is made with 7% antimony and 2% copper, is not much used today