Generation of long time creep data on refractory alloys at elevated temperatures Tenth quarterly report, Sep. 26 - Dec. 26, 1965
Long time creep test data generated for refractory alloys at elevated temperatures
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Long time creep test data generated for refractory alloys at elevated temperatures
While NiTiPd alloys have been extensively studied for proposed use in high-temperature shape-memory applications, little is known about the shape-memory response of these materials under stress. Consequently, the isobaric thermal cyclic responses of five (Ni,Pd)49.5Ti50.5 alloys with constant stoichiometry and Pd contents ranging from 15 to 46 at. pct were investigated. From these tests, transformation temperatures, transformation strain (which is proportional to work output), and unrecovered strain per cycle (a measure of dimensional instability) were determined as a function of stress for each alloy. It was found that increasing the Pd content over this range resulted in a linear increase in transformation temperature, as expected. At a given stress level, work output decreased while the amount of unrecovered strain produced during each load-biased thermal cycle increased with increasing Pd content, during the initial thermal cycles. However, continued thermal cycling at constant stress resulted in a saturation of the work output and nearly eliminated further unrecovered strain under certain conditions, resulting in stable behavior amenable to many actuator applications.
The suitability of the eutectics for high temperature fasteners was investigated. Material properties were determined as a function of temperature, and included shear parallel and perpendicular to the growth direction and torsion parallel to it. Techniques for fabricating typical fastener shapes included grinding, creep forming, and direct casting. Both lamellar Ni3Al-Ni3Nb and fibrous (Co,Cr,Al)-(Cr,Co)7C3 alloys showed promise as candidate materials for high temperature fastener applications. A brief evaluation of the performance of the best fabricated fastener design was made.
Diffusionless phase transformations in Fe-Ni alloys with up to 35 wt pct Ni were studied using resistance-heated diamond anvil cells and synchrotron radiation. At temperatures up to 600 C and pressures up to 25 GPa, Fe-35 percent Ni showed only the face-centered cubic (fcc) phase while Fe-25 percent Ni and Fe-10 percent Ni showed the body-centered cubic (bcc) and hexagonal close-packed (hcp) phases in addition to the fcc phase. The phase relationships of these solid phases are topologically similar to those of pure iron. The triple point becomes lower in temperature, and the slope (dT/dP) of the fcc/hcp boundary decreased as Ni-content increases in the alloys. From these results it is inferred that Fe-Ni alloys in the earth's inner core might exist as two phases, fcc and hcp. The existence of these two phases could have played an important role in the separation of the inner and outer core.
Alloys of the MCrAlX type are the basis for high temperature surface protection systems in gas turbines. M can be one or more of Ni, Co, or Fe and X denotes a reactive metal added to enhance oxide scale adherence. The selection and formation as well as the oxidation, hot corrosion and thermal fatigue performance of MCrAlX coatings are discussed. Coatings covered range from simple aluminides formed by pack cementation to the more advanced physical vapor deposition overlay coatings and developmental plasma spray deposited thermal barrier coatings.
A hybrid light-weight heat exchanger concept has been developed that uses high-conductivity carbon-carbon (C-C) composites as the heat-transfer fins and uses conventional high-temperature metals, such as Inconel, nickel, and titanium as the parting sheets to meet leakage and structural requirements. In order to maximize thermal conductivity, the majority of carbon fiber is aligned in the fin direction resulting in 300 W/m.K or higher conductivity in the fin directions. As a result of this fiber orientation, the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) of the C-C composite in both non-fiber directions matches well with the CTE of various high-temperature metal alloys. This allows the joining of fins and parting sheets by using high-temperature braze alloys.
Fretting experiments were conducted on titanium, a series of Ni-Cr-Al alloys and on some high temperature turbine alloys at room temperature and at elevated temperatures in air and in various inert environments. It was found that, depending on temperature and environment, the fretting behavior of the materials examined could be classified according to four general types of behavior. Briefly, these types of behavior were: (1) the complete absence of oxidation, as in inert environments, generally leading to low rates of fretting wear but high fretting friction; (2) gradual attrition of surface oxide with each fretting stroke, found in these experiments to operate in concert with other dominating mechanisms; (3) rapid oxidation at surface fatigue damage sites, resulting in undermining and rapid disintegration of the load bearing surface; and (4) the formation of coherent, protective oxide film, resulting in low rates of fretting wear. An analytical model predicting conditions favorable to the fourth type of behavior was outlined.
The Partnership for Next Generation Vehicles (PNGV) is not a NASA initiative to develop powerful new rockets and spacecraft, even though it may sound like one. PNGV was a partnership established by the Clinton administration between the Federal government and the U.S. Council for Automotive Research to develop technologies that improve fuel efficiency and reduce emissions from cars and trucks. More than 20 Federal laboratories from the Departments of Commerce, Energy, Transportation, and Defense; the Environmental Protection Agency; the National Science Foundation; and NASA were all involved in PNGV, in addition to more than 350 automotive suppliers, universities, and small businesses. In support of this tremendous effort, Jonathan Lee, a materials engineer at Marshall Space Flight Center, worked with a major automobile manufacturer in 1995 to develop a strong aluminum alloy for high temperature applications. The aim was to use the alloy for manufacturing parts for an internal combustion engine, as well as for NASA s propulsion applications. When funding from PNGV ended, Marshall continued to support the alloy s development with help from NASA s Innovative Partnerships Program (now the Office of the Chief Technologist). Together with PoShou Chen, a scientist with Morgan Research Corporation, Lee invented a highstrength aluminum alloy called MSFC-398 that, when tested, was three to four times stronger than conventional aluminum alloys at high temperatures. By the late 1990s, Lee says, NASA s scientists had successfully developed and patented this technology, which has great potential applications not for just automotive, but also for aerospace, marine, and commercial applications
High temperature compatibility of uranium dioxide fuel contained in tungsten-rhenium alloy
The oxidation behavior of high temperature glassy alloys produced by rapid solidification processing is investigated and the effects of processing and composition on oxidation behavior is studied. Glassy Ta-44.5at%Ir, Ta-40at%Ir-10at%B and Nb-45at%Ir oxidized rapidly at 700 to 800 C at an oxygen partial pressure of .001 atm. The alloys were embrittled during the oxidation process. No apparent oxidation or embrittlement of the Ta-Ir alloy occurred after oxidation for 4h at 500 C at an oxygen partial pressure of .001 atm. Embrittlement occurred, however, after 100h of exposure under the latter conditions. Alloy embrittlement is associated with the partial or full conversion of the metallic glass to a mixture of crystalline beta-Ta2O5 and metallic iridium. Hot compaction of glassy alloys of this type must be limited to relatively low temperatures (approx. 500 C) and short times at the low temperatures unless extremely low oxygen partial pressures can be achieved during the compaction process.
Ab initio simulations of phase stability and martensitic phase transitions are performed for NiTi-based ternary shape memory alloys (SMAs). Specifically, we considered NiTiHf and NiTiZr, which are highly studied for high temperature SMA applications. Previously, we performed investigations of ordered NiTi and related binaries [1,2]. However, similar approaches for chemically disordered compounds present additional difficulties. In this work, special quasi-random structures (SQS) were generated for various compositions, x∈[0,0.5], of Ni0.5Ti(0.5-x)Hfx and Ni0.5Ti(0.5-x)Zrx to capture chemical disorder of off-stoichiometric compounds. Phase stability was evaluated through analysis of finite temperature phonon spectra using temperature dependent effective potential (TDEP) method. Free energies for the cubic B2 phase of NiTiHf and NiTiZr were computed using ab initio thermodynamic integration (AITI) developed previously [1,2]. Free energies for monoclinic B19’ and orthorhombic B33 phases were evaluated via quasi harmonic approximations (QHA). Our results show a critical composition (xc) where the three phases of B2, B19’ and B33 meet, i.e. there is a tri-critical point. For x xc, the transition is between B33 and B2, i.e. it is not a shape memory transition. The approach presented here opens the door to ab initio based predictions of MTT for arbitrary ternary SMAs.
Shape memory alloys (SMAs) are an enabling component in the development of compact, lightweight, durable, high-force actuation systems particularly for use where hydraulics or electrical motors are not practical. However, commercial shape memory alloys based on NiTi are only suitable for applications near room temperature, due to their relatively low transformation temperatures, while many potential applications require higher temperature capability. Consequently, a family of (Ni,Pt)(sub 1-x)Ti(sub x) shape memory alloys with Ti concentrations ranging from about 15 to 25 at.% have been developed for applications in which there are requirements for SMA actuators to exert high forces at operating temperatures higher than those of conventional binary NiTi SMAs. These alloys can be heat treated in the range of 500 C to produce a series of fine precipitate phases that increase the strength of alloy while maintaining a high transformation temperature, even in Ti-lean compositions.
Power systems with operating temperatures in the range of 815 to 982 C (1500 to 1800 F) frequently require alloys that can operate for long times at these temperatures. A critical requirement is that these alloys have adequate oxidation resistance. The alloys used in these power systems require thousands of hours of operating life with intermittent shutdown to room temperature. Intermittent power plant shutdowns, however, offer the possibility that the protective scale will tend to spall (i.e., crack and flake off) upon cooling, increasing the rate of oxidative attack in subsequent heating cycles. Thus, it is critical that candidate alloys be evaluated for cyclic oxidation behavior. It was determined that exposing test alloys to ten 1000-hr cycles in static air at 982 10 000-hr Cyclic Oxidation Behavior of 68 High-Temperature Co-, Fe-, and Ni-Base Alloys Evaluated at 982 C (1800 F) could give a reasonable simulation of long-time power plant operation. Iron- (Fe-), nickel- (Ni-), and cobalt- (Co-) based high-temperature alloys with sufficient chromium (Cr) and/or aluminum (Al) content can exhibit excellent oxidation resistance. The protective oxides formed by these classes of alloys are typically Cr2O3 and/or Al2O3, and are usually influenced by their Cr, or Cr and Al, content. Sixty-eight Co-, Fe-, and Ni-base high-temperature alloys, typical of those used at this temperature or higher, were used in this study. At the NASA Lewis Research Center, the alloys were tested and compared on the basis of their weight change as a function of time, x-ray diffraction of the protective scale composition, and the physical appearance of the exposed samples. Although final appearance and x-ray diffraction of the final scale products were two factors used to evaluate the oxidation resistance of each alloy, the main criterion was the oxidation kinetics inferred from the specific weight change versus time data. These data indicated a range of oxidation behavior including parabolic (typical of isothermal oxidation), paralinear, linear, and mixed-linear kinetics.
Long time creep data on refractory alloys at high temperatures
Creep testing data and machine reliability for high-temperature long-time tests on niobium, tungsten, and rhenium alloys
Tungsten-hafnium-carbon alloy has tensile strengths of 88,200 psi at 3000 deg F and 62,500 psi at 3500 deg F. Possible industrial applications for this alloy would include electrical components such as switches and spark plugs, die materials for die casting steels, and heating elements.
Creep resistance of refractory alloys at elevated temperatures under ultrahigh vacuum conditions
Physical property evaluation of oxidation resistant coating materials for high temperature protection of tantalum-base alloys