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Inconel

Aerospace Engineering

Inconel is a family of nickel-chromium superalloys, with iron as a third major constituent, engineered to hold their strength and resist oxidation and corrosion at extreme temperatures and pressures. Metallurgists at the International Nickel Company discovered it in the early 1930s, with the trademark registered before December 1932, and it saw early significant use in the 1940s when Henry Wiggin and Co, a Mond Nickel subsidiary in England, supplied it for Frank Whittle's pioneering jet engine work. It forms a thick, stable passivating oxide layer that shields the surface from further attack, which has made it standard for turbine blades, rocket engines, nuclear reactors and other parts that must hold their strength under sustained heat. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Facts
Primary UseSourced to the subject's own account
Gas turbine and jet engine components, rocket engines and spacecraft hardware, nuclear reactor internals, and exhaust systems exposed to extreme heat and corrosion. 1
Origin YearSourced to the subject's own account
1930 1
Classification
Material ClassSourced to the subject's own account
Metal 1
Connections

Associated With

Forging, Methods
Investment Casting, Methods

Inconel turbine blades are commonly made by investment casting.

Machining, Methods
Nickel, Materials
Nickel, Materials

Inconel is a nickel-based superalloy

Nuclear Reactor, Inventions

Inconel primary-use names nuclear reactor internals

Rocket Engine, Inventions

Inconel is used in rocket engine combustion chambers and nozzles for high-temperature, high-stress service.

The Jet Engine, Inventions

Inconel nickel-based superalloys are used in jet engine hot sections (turbine blades, combustors) for their high-temperature strength.

Turbojet, Inventions

Nickel-based Inconel superalloys resist the high temperatures of turbojet combustors and turbine sections.

Welding, Methods

In Field

Sources
1. Inconel (Wikipedia)
Wikipedia
  • Properties section
    Inconel forms a thick, stable passivating oxide layer protecting the surface from further attack. Inconel retains strength over a wide temperature range, making it attractive for high-temperature applications.
  • material-class sentence
    Inconel is a family of nickel-chromium superalloys, with iron as a third major constituent, engineered to hold their strength and resist oxidation and corrosion at extreme temperatures and pressures.
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