Bruker, Billerica, Mass., introduces the NanoForce nanoindenting and nanomechanical testing system.
Continue readingBruker launches NanoForce nanomechanical testing system
December 12, 2014 Source: ASM International
Cadence system SoC verifier enables up to ten times improvement in productivity
December 11, 2014 Source: ASM International
Cadence system SoC verifier enables up to ten times improvement in productivity
Cadence Design Systems Inc., San Jose, Calif., has developed the Cadence Perspec System Verifier platform, a software-driven system-on-chip (SoC) verification solution.
Continue readingUltrasound treatment removes hydrogen from molten aluminum
December 10, 2014 Source:
Researchers at Brunel University London report that an ultrasound treatment could be a much cheaper and more environmentally friendly way to remove hydrogen from aluminum alloys than conventional methods. Treating molten metal with ultrasound is a cleaner, greener and more efficient route to produce high quality castings
Molten aluminum alloys at 700°C naturally contain a high percentage of dissolved hydrogen. Left untreated, the resulting solid metal is highly porous. The most widely- used method of hydrogen removal – argon rotary degassing - is energy intensive and requires costly components.
In pilot scale trials funded by EU Framework Seven Programme, the team found that ultrasound was just as efficient as the standard method, but produced far less waste material (dross). The price of argon gas continues to rise because making it requires producers to liquefy air, which takes a lot of energy.
Research with quantities of up to 150 kg confirmed earlier laboratory tests that a moving ultrasound probe could achieve results similar to those of the argon process, but with the advantages of not relying on expensive and fragile graphite rods and expensive gas which cannot be captured and recycled. The five-fold reduction of the amount of dross created is another benefit.
Ultrasound treatment removes hydrogen from molten aluminum
Researchers at Brunel University London report that an ultrasound treatment could be a much cheaper and more environmentally friendly way to remove hydrogen from aluminum alloys than conventional methods.
Continue readingIpsen ships vacuum furnaces to aerospace companies
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Ipsen, Cherry Valley, Ill., reports that three separate companies recently purchased different Ipsen furnace models, all of which are for the aerospace industry. Ipsen shipped two of the heat-treating vacuum furnaces to Texas; the third furnace was shipped to the United Arab Emirates. While all of these furnaces will be used to process parts for the Aerospace industry, they all varied in size and model, as well as the type of parts they will produce.
The Horizontal TurboTreater with 6-bar partial pressure will be used to process fasteners. This specific furnace features a 36 x 36 x 48 in. all-metal hot zone with a 3000-pound load capacity. It operates at temperatures of 1000 to 2400°F, with ±5°F temperature uniformity.
The Horizontal Metal Master with 2-bar partial pressure will be used to process engine parts. This specific furnace features 24 x 24 x 40 in. all-metal hot zone with a 1500-pound (680 kg) load capacity. It operates at temperatures of 1,000 °F to 2,200 °F (538 °C to 1,204 °C) with ±10 °F temperature uniformity.
The Titan H4 with 2-bar absolute pressure will be used to process parts for gas turbines. This specific furnace features 24 x 28 x 48 in. all-metal hot zone with a 2000-pound load capacity.
Ipsen ships vacuum furnaces to aerospace companies
Ipsen, Cherry Valley, Ill., reports that three separate companies recently purchased different Ipsen furnace models, all of which are for the aerospace industry.
Continue readingReliance Steel & Aluminum completes acquisition of Fox Metals and Alloys
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Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co., Los Angeles, announces that it has acquired all of the capital stock of Fox Metals and Alloys Inc., Houston. Fox is a steel distributor specializing in alloy, carbon, and stainless steel bar and plate products. Through a network of more than 290 locations in 39 states and twelve countries, Reliance provides value-added metals processing services and distributes a full line of over 100,000 metal products to more than 125,000 customers in a broad range of industries.
Fox, located in Houston, Texas, is a supplier in the Houston/Gulf Coast region when critical supplies are needed on a timely basis. Fox's in-house processing services include saw cutting, plate burning and testing. Net sales for Fox were approximately $50.5 million for the twelve months ended December 31, 2013.
Fox will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. Additional terms were not disclosed.
Reliance Steel & Aluminum completes acquisition of Fox Metals and Alloys
Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co., Los Angeles, announces that it has acquired all of the capital stock of Fox Metals and Alloys Inc., Houston.
Continue readingAlcoa cuts production time for auto alloys from 20 days to 20 minutes
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Alcoa, Pittsburgh, Pa., has developed a technology called Micromill, which is said to reduce production time for automotive aluminum alloys from 20 days to 20 minutes. It reportedly changes the microstructure, resulting in 40% higher formability and 30% greater strength than incumbent aluminum, while meeting stringent automotive surface quality requirements. Automotive parts will also reportedly be twice as formable and 30% lighter than parts made from high-strength steel.
Micromill aluminum sheet is easier to shape into intricate forms, such as the inside panels of automobile doors and external fenders, which today are generally made of steel. Higher strength will improve dent resistance, enabling the production of automotive sheet that is thinner and even lighter than previous generations. It will also be the fastest, most productive aluminum casting and rolling system in the world.
Micromill also has a significantly smaller footprint than a traditional rolling mill, at just one quarter the size, and lowers energy use by 50%. The Alcoa Micromill technology and the differentiated metal it will produce are covered by more than 130 patents around the world.
Alcoa cuts production time for auto alloys from 20 days to 20 minutes
Alcoa, Pittsburgh, Pa., has developed a technology called Micromill, that is said to reduce production time for automotive aluminum alloys from 20 days to 20 minutes.
Continue readingA heart of gold? Try platinum
December 5, 2014 Source:
A platinum-chromium alloy makes coronary stents stronger, more flexible and resistant to corrosion. Now, Department of Energy National Lab scientists are winning an award for their work on the development, transfer and successful commercialization of the novel alloy.
The researchers from the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), Morgantown, W. Va., will receive a 2015 ASM Engineering Materials Achievement Award from the materials science and engineering society ASM International, Materials Park, Ohio. NETL's Paul Jablonski, Paul Turner, Edward Argetsinger, and Jeffrey Hansen developed the alloy in collaboration with researchers at Boston Scientific Corp., Marlborough, Mass.
The alloy is the first stainless steel formulation for stents with a significant concentration of platinum, making it easier for coronary specialists to see the stent on x-ray during placement and expansion. The alloy also increases the stents' corrosive resistance, strength and flexibility. Stents made from the alloy benefit patients by shortening recovery time and avoiding follow-on procedures and more invasive surgery, which reduces healthcare costs.
Since their commercial introduction in 2010, the stents have helped more than 2.5 million people, generated more than $6 billion in sales and captured a 25 percent share of the coronary stent market. Engineered and manufactured in the U.S., the stent series has created 450 sustainable domestic jobs.
Image caption — This coronary stent is made with a lab-developed, award-winning platinum-chromium alloy. Courtesy of NETL.
A heart of gold? Try platinum
A platinum-chromium alloy makes coronary stents stronger, more flexible and resistant to corrosion wins award from ASM International.
Continue readingComposite materials replace titanium on Orion space capsule
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TenCate Advanced Composites North America, Fairfield, Ca., developed a heat resistant composite for the heat shield and backshell structure of the Lockheed Martin Orion multi-purpose crew vehicle. The vehicle was successfully launched in December. The suite of advanced materials in the space capsule replace the traditional titanium solution for re-entry and splashdown requirements and also reduce weight and cost. The heat shield design allows very large composite structures to be fabricated out of autoclave.
Lockheed Martin Space Systems Orion thermal protection group worked closely with TenCate Advanced Composites to develop a special heat resistant composite resin for the 16.5 ft (5 m) diameter heat shield and the crew vehicle backshell structure of the Orion space capsule.
The successful launch of NASA's Orion multi-purpose crew vehicle represents the efforts, innovation, and teamwork of many individuals and companies involved. Steve Mead, VP of marketing & sales at TenCate Advanced Composites says: "This week's flight represents the culmination of a five year development and qualification effort for a suite of materials used in this extreme application. Further, as a result of the heat shield's large size and thickness, the advanced composites used had to achieve high consolidation using only a low pressure vacuum bag only process. TenCate is honored to be one of Lockheed's partners on this important space program."
Image caption — NASA's Orion spacecraft will carry astronauts further into space than ever before using a module based on Europe's Automated Transfer Vehicles (ATV). The ATV-derived service module, sitting directly below Orion's crew capsule, will provide propulsion, power, thermal control, as well as supplying water and gas to the astronauts in the habitable module. The first Orion mission will be an uncrewed lunar flyby in 2017, returning to Earth's atmosphere at 11 km/s—the fastest reentry ever.
Composite materials replace titanium on Orion space capsule
TenCate Advanced Composites North America, Fairfield, Ca., developed a heat resistant composite for the heat shield and backshell structure of the Lockheed Martin Orion multi-purpose crew vehicle.
Continue readingTungsten-chromium-iron PM alloy has hardness of 21 GPa
December 3, 2014 Source:
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, announces that researchers have developed a tungsten-chromium-iron powder metallurgy alloy that could replace depleted uranium in armor-piercing projectiles. The W-7Cr-9Fe alloy is significantly stronger than commercial tungsten alloys. Tests show a nanoindentation hardness of 21 GPa, about double the nanoindentation hardness of nanocrystalline iron-based alloys or coarse-grained tungsten.
The material is made by a powder metallurgy process of high-energy ball milling. This process involves repeated shearing of the metal powders, with the shearing driving the alloying elements to intermix while competing thermally activated recovery processes allow the alloy to return to its equilibrium state.
"So there is this competition between these two processes," says materials science and engineering graduate student Zachary C. Cordero. He reported results in a paper with senior author and Department of Materials Science and Engineering head Christopher A. Schuh and colleagues in the journal Metallurgical and Materials Transactions A.
His paper proposed a simple model to predict chemistries in a given alloy that will form a solid solution, and validated it with experiments. The improvement was achieved by compacting metal powders in a field-assisted sintering hot press, with the best result, measured by the fine grain structure and highest hardness, achieved at a processing time of one minute at 1200°C. Longer processing times and higher temperatures led to coarser grains and weaker mechanical performance.
"The way that I make my materials is with powder processing, where first we make nanocrystalline powder and then we consolidate it into a bulk object. But the challenge is that consolidation requires exposing the material to higher temperatures," Mr. Cordero says. Heating the alloys to high temperatures can cause the grains within the metal to enlarge, which weakens them. Cordero was able to achieve ultrafine grain structure of about 130 nanometers in the W-7Cr-9Fe compact, confirmed by electron micrographs.
"Using this powder processing route, we can make big samples up to 2 centimeters in diameter, or we could go bigger, with dynamic compressive strengths of 4 GPa. The fact that we can make these materials using a scalable process is maybe even more impressive," he says.
http://newsoffice.mit.edu/2014/alloying-tougher-tungsten-zack-cordero-1202#.VH5Abu6skNM.email
Tungsten-chromium-iron PM alloy has hardness of 21 GPa
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, announces that researchers have developed a tungsten-chromium-iron powder metallurgy alloy that could replace depleted uranium in armor-piercing projectiles.
Continue reading3D printer builds first object in space
December 2, 2014 Source: ASM International
3D printer builds first object in space
NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala., announces that an object has been additively manufactured in space for the first time.
Continue reading