Refractory metals have high melting points, are solid at room temperature, and resist wear and deformation. The five main refractory metals are niobium, molybdenum, tantalum, tungsten, and rhenium, but others are sometimes included. Tungsten is particularly heat-resistant and is used in rocket nose cones, light bulbs, and steel additives. Refractory metals are used in high-performance machinery, such as in aerospace and semiconductor electronics manufacturing, and in industries such as mining and oil drilling. Each refractory metal has specific properties that make it useful in various applications.
Refractory metals are metallic elements of the periodic table with several distinct characteristics. They have melting points above 3,632° Fahrenheit (2,000° Celsius) and are solid at room temperature. They are also remarkably resistant to wear elements such as creep deformation, which is a change in shape that ordinary metals undergo when exposed to stress. There are five well-established refractory metals, including niobium, molybdenum, tantalum, tungsten and rhenium. However, other metal elements and compounds are sometimes included in this group, including chromium, tungsten alloys, and a molybdenum alloy that contains titanium and zirconium, known as TZM.
The heat resistance of tungsten refractory metals is a good example of one of these properties. It is so large that even when heated to a temperature of 1,832° Fahrenheit (1,000° Celsius), it still shows twice the strength that the element iron has at room temperature. This makes it useful for applications such as rocket nose cones, as a long-life filament in incandescent light bulbs, and as an additive to steel used in welding and other high-temperature applications. Stainless steel also contains tungsten to increase its corrosion resistance property of refractory metals, for use in industrial piping where strong and caustic chemicals are processed.
Because refractory metals wear out at a significantly slower rate, they are also used extensively in the manufacture of components that need to demonstrate long-term abrasion resistance, such as bushings and nozzles. Many of these components are used in high-performance machinery, such as in the aerospace industry or semiconductor electronics manufacturing. Tungsten alloys, such as TZM, niobium and chromium are most often used for these applications. Chromium is also included in the oxidation resistance category of refractory metals, because it is a highly durable coating for bearings.
Other properties of refractory metals point to their uses in several specific industries. Molybdenum has a very predictable coefficient of expansion, making it a key metal in thermocouples and computer heat sinks, while rhenium’s unique chemical reactivity gives it applications in processes such as hydrocracking, the breakdown of petroleum into smaller molecules. simple. Niobium is used in the design of nuclear power plants and is an ideal metal for superconductors, as it has a very low level of neutron absorption. Tantalum is used in aerospace and surgical equipment due to its inert nature in contact with body fluids and tissue. Tungsten and its compounds are used extensively as a reinforcing metal in everything from mining to the oil drilling industries, with such demand that much of the metal is salvaged from scrap.
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