Equipment for alloy development
- Arcast IND500 induction furnace with vacuum or inert gas capability.
- Arcast AR200 arc furnace with inert gas shrouding capability.
- Arcast gas atomiser for production of metal powder under inert gas.
- Optomec LENS MR-7 direct laser metal deposition system, with 4 separate hoppers.
- Heat treatment facilities: salt bath, inert gas, vacuum.
- TA 850 Dilatometer with quenching, sub-zero, compression, and tension modes.
- Struers CitoPress, Discotom, Accutom, and RotoPol for metallographic preparation.
With these casting facilities, we can produce small amounts of alloys with conventional or exotic compositions. Moreover, the ingots can be re-melted and atomised to produce metal powders. The powders are suitable for direct laser metal deposition, either pure or mixed with up to three other materials. Furthermore, the feed rate of each hopper is controlled independently, making it possible to produce specimens with graded composition.
The heat treatment facilities can be used for further processing and the dilatometer allows us to obtain the CCT curves of an alloy much faster than ever before. The sub-zero quenching mode increases the cooling rate and reaches cryogenic temperatures. In addition, the dilatometer can simulate thermo-mechanical processes using the tension or compression modules.
The facilities for metallographic sample preparation are the perfect complement, enabling rapid characterisation of the specimens at any stage of the process.