Inconel

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Inconel 718 round bar

Inconel is a family of austenitic nickel-chromium-based superalloys.[1] The name is a trademark

of Special Metals Corporation, a wholly owned subsidiary of Precision Castparts Corp.

Inconel alloys are oxidation and corrosion resistant materials well suited for service in extreme
environments subjected to pressure and heat. When heated, Inconel forms a thick, stable,
passivating oxide layer protecting the surface from further attack. Inconel retains strength over a
wide temperature range, attractive for high temperature applications where aluminum and steel
would succumb to creep as a result of thermally induced crystal vacancies. Inconel’s high
temperature strength is developed by solid solution strengthening or precipitation strengthening,
depending on the alloy. In age hardening or precipitation strengthening varieties, alloying
additions of aluminum and titanium combine with nickel to form the intermetallic compound
Ni3(Ti,Al) or gamma prime (γ’). Gamma prime forms small cubic crystals that inhibit slip and
creep effectively at elevated temperatures.

Inconel alloys are typically used in high temperature applications. It is sometimes referred to in
English as "Inco" (or occasionally "Iconel"). Common trade names for Inconel Alloy 625
include: Inconel 625, Chronin 625, Altemp 625, Haynes 625, Nickelvac 625 and Nicrofer 6020.[2]

The Inconel family of alloys was first developed in the 1940s by research teams at Wiggin Alloys
(Hereford, England), which has since been acquired by SMC,[3] in support of the development of
the Whittle jet engine.

Contents
[hide]
 1 Composition
 2 Properties
  3 Machining
 4 Joining
 5 Uses
 6 Inconel alloys
 7 See also
 8 References

Composition[edit]
Different Inconels have widely varying compositions, but all are predominantly nickel, with chromium as
the second element.

Element (% by mass)
Inconel
Ni Cr Fe Mo Nb Co Mn Cu Al Ti Si C S P B
14.0- 6.0-
600 [4] 72.0 1.0 0.5 0.5 0.15 0.015
17.0 10.0
44.2- 20.0- 8.0- 10.0- 0.8-
617 [5] 3.0 0.5 0.5 0.6 0.5 0.15 0.015 0.015 0.006
56.0 24.0 10.0 15.0 1.5
20.0- 8.0- 3.15-
625 [6] 58.0 5.0 1.0 0.5 0.4 0.4 0.5 0.1 0.015 0.015
23.0 10.0 4.15
690 [7] 59.5 30 9.2 0.35 0.01 0.02 0.35 0.019 0.003
50.0- 17.0- 2.8- 4.75- 0.2- 0.65-
718 [8] balance 1.0 0.35 0.3 0.35 0.08 0.015 0.015 0.006
55.0 21.0 3.3 5.5 0.8 1.15
14.0- 0.7- 0.4- 2.25-
X-750 [9] 70.0 5.0-9.0 1.0 1.0 0.5 0.5 0.08 0.01
17.0 1.2 1.0 2.75

Properties[edit]
Inconel alloys are oxidation- and corrosion-resistant materials well suited for service in extreme
environments subjected to high pressure and kinetic energy. When heated, Inconel forms a thick
and stable passivating oxide layer protecting the surface from further attack. Inconel retains
strength over a wide temperature range, attractive for high-temperature applications where
aluminium and steel would succumb to creep as a result of thermally induced crystal vacancies
(see Arrhenius equation). Inconel's high temperature strength is developed by solid solution
strengthening or precipitation strengthening, depending on the alloy. In age-hardening or
precipitation-strengthening varieties, small amounts of niobium combine with nickel to form the
intermetallic compound Ni3Nb or gamma prime (γ'). Gamma prime forms small cubic crystals
that inhibit slip and creep effectively at elevated temperatures.[10] The formation of gamma-prime
crystals increases over time, especially after three hours of a heat exposure of 850 °C, and
continues to grow after 72 hours of exposure.[11]

Machining[edit]
Inconel is a difficult metal to shape and machine using traditional techniques due to rapid work
hardening. After the first machining pass, work hardening tends to plastically deform either the
workpiece or the tool on subsequent passes. For this reason, age-hardened Inconels such as 718
are machined using an aggressive but slow cut with a hard tool, minimizing the number of passes
required. Alternatively, the majority of the machining can be performed with the workpiece in a
solutionized form, with only the final steps being performed after age hardening.

External threads are machined using a lathe to "single-point" the threads. or by rolling the
threads in the solution treated condition (for hardenable alloys) using a screw machine. Inconel
718 can also be roll-threaded after full aging by using induction heat to 1300°F without
increasing the grain size.[citation needed] Holes with internal threads are made by threadmilling. Internal
threads can also be formed using a sinker EDM (electrical discharge machining).[citation needed]

Cutting of a plate is often done with a waterjet cutter. New whisker-reinforced ceramic cutters
are also used to machine nickel alloys. They remove material at a rate typically eight times faster
than carbide cutters. Apart from these methods, Inconel parts can also be manufactured by
selective laser melting.

Joining[edit]
Welding of some Inconel alloys (especially the gamma prime precipitation hardened family, i.e.,
Waspalloy, X-750) can be difficult due to cracking and microstructural segregation of alloying
elements in the heat-affected zone. However, several alloys such as 625 and 718 have been
designed to overcome these problems. The most common welding methods are gas tungsten arc
welding and electron beam welding.[12]

Innovations in pulsed micro laser welding have also become more popular in recent years for
specific applications.

Uses[edit]
Inconel is often encountered in extreme environments. It is common in gas turbine blades, seals,
and combustors, as well as turbocharger rotors and seals, electric submersible well pump motor
shafts, high temperature fasteners, chemical processing and pressure vessels, heat exchanger
tubing, steam generators in nuclear pressurized water reactors, natural gas processing with
contaminants such as H2S and CO2, firearm sound suppressor blast baffles, and Formula One,
NASCAR and APR, LLC exhaust systems.[13][14] It is also used in the turbo system of the 3rd
generation Mazda RX7, and the exhaust systems of high powered rotary engined Norton
motorcycles where exhaust temperatures reach more than 1,000 degrees C.[15] Inconel is
increasingly used in the boilers of waste incinerators.[16] The Joint European Torus and DIII-D
tokamaks vacuum vessels are made in Inconel.[17] Inconel 718 is commonly used for cryogenic
storage tanks, downhole shafts and wellhead parts.[18]

Several applications of inconel in aerospace include:

 North American Aviation constructed the skin of the X-15 rocket plane out of an Inconel
alloy known as "Inconel X".[19]
 Rocketdyne used Inconel X-750 for the thrust chamber of the F-1 rocket engine used in
the first stage of the Saturn V booster.[20]
 SpaceX uses inconel in the engine manifold of their Merlin rocket engine which powers
the Falcon 9 launch vehicle.[21]
 In a first for 3D printing, the SpaceX SuperDraco engine that provides launch escape
system and propulsive-landing thrust for the Dragon V2 crew-carrying space capsule is
fully printed, the first fully printed rocket engine. In particular, the engine combustion
chamber is printed of Inconel using a process of direct metal laser sintering, and operates
at a chamber pressure of 6,900 kilopascals (1,000 psi) at a very high temperature.

Rolled Inconel was frequently used as the recording medium by engraving in black box recorders
on aircraft.[22]

Alternatives to the use of Inconel in chemical applications such as scrubbers, columns, reactors,
and pipes are Hastelloy, perfluoroalkoxy (PFA) lined carbon steel or fiber reinforced plastic.

Inconel alloys[edit]
 Inconel 600: Solid solution strengthened
 Inconel 625: Acid resistant, good weldability. The LCF version is typically used in
bellows.
 Inconel 690: Low cobalt content for nuclear applications, and low resistivity[23]
 Inconel 713: Newly developed alloy
 Inconel 718: Gamma double prime strengthened with good weldability
 Inconel 751: Increased aluminium content for improved rupture strength in the 1600 °F
range[24]
 Inconel 792: Increased aluminium content for improved high temperature corrosion
properties, used especially in gas turbines
 Inconel 939: Gamma prime strengthened to increase weldability

See also[edit]
 Incoloy
  Monel
 Hastelloy
 Nimonic
 Stellite

References[edit]
1. Jump up ^ "High-Performance Alloys". Special Metals Corporation. Retrieved 2010-04-26.
2. Jump up ^ "Special Alloys: Inconel 625". Retrieved 2010-04-26.

3. Jump up ^ "Special Metals Corporation: History". Retrieved 2012-05-18.

4. Jump up ^ INCONEL alloy 600, Special Metals Corporation

5. Jump up ^ hightempmetals.com, High Temp Metals

6. Jump up ^ INCONEL alloy 625, Special Metals Corporation

7. Jump up ^ Stress Corrosion Cracking of Alloy 600 and Alloy 690 in Hydrogen/Steam at 380C. G.
Sui, J. Titchmarsh, G. Heys, J. Congleton. Corrosion Science, Vol 39, No. 3, pp 565-587, 1997

8. Jump up ^ INCONEL alloy 718, Special Metals Corporation

9. Jump up ^ INCONEL alloy X-750, Special Metals Corporation

10. Jump up ^ [1], ChemEurope.com.

11. Jump up ^ [2], University of Cambridge: Dissemination of IT for the Promotion of Materials
Science (DoITPoMS).

12. Jump up ^ Joining, retrieved 2009-10-09.

13. Jump up ^ Power Generation, Special Metals Corporation.

14. Jump up ^ Chemical Processing, Special Metals Corporation.

15. Jump up ^ Motorcycle Trader.Norton Rotary Revival.Cathcart.Dec 2007.

16. Jump up ^ Inconell - state-of-the-art corrosion protection by Babcock & Wilcox Vølund, 2003

17. Jump up ^ The Inconel JET vessel in use since 1983. A simple, sturdy structure.

18. Jump up ^ Inconel Alloy, Inconel 718.

19. Jump up ^ Robert S. Houston, Richard P. Hallion, and Ronald G. Boston, EDITOR'S
INTRODUCTION, "Transiting from Air to Space: The North American X-15", The Hypersonic
Revolution: Case Studies in the History of Hypersonic Technology, Air Force History and Museums
Program, 1998. NASA.gov.
 20. Jump up ^ Anthony Young, "The Saturn V Booster: Powering Apollo into History", Springer-
Verlag, 2009.

21. Jump up ^ "SpaceX Falcon 9". Space Launch Report. Retrieved 2013-08-13.

22. Jump up ^ gizmodo.com

23. Jump up ^ INCONEL alloy 690, NDT Resource Center

24. Jump up ^ INCONEL alloy 751, Special Metals Corporation

Inconel 625 – Nickel-Chromium-Molybdenum

Alloy
Inconel 625 is a Nickel-Chromium-Molybdenum alloy with
excellent corrosion resistance in a wide range of corrosive media,
being especially resistant to pitting and crevice corrosion. It is a
favourable choice for sea water applications.

Chemical Composition of Inconel 625

The compositional range for Inconel 625 is provided in the table below.

Element Content
Ni 58% min
Cr 20 - 23%
Mo 8 - 10%
Nb+Ta 3.15 - 4.15%
Fe 5% max

Typical Properties of Inconel 625

Typical properties of Inconel 625 are covered in the following table.

Property Metric Imperial

Density 8.44 g/cm3 0.305 lb/in3
Melting point 1350 °C 2460 °F
Co-Efficient of 12.8 μm/m.°C 7.1x10-6 in/in.°F
Expansion
(20-100°C) (70-212°F)
Modulus of 79 kN/mm2 11458 ksi
rigidity
Modulus of 205.8 kN/mm2 29849 ksi
elasticity

Properties of Supplied Materials and Heat

Treated Materials

Condition of Heat Treatment (After Forming)

Supply
Annealed/Spring Stress relieve at 260 - 370°C (500 - 700°F)
Temper for 30 - 60 minutes and air cool.

Condition Approx Tensile Strength Approx Service

Temp.
Annealed 800 - 1000 116 - 145 -200 to -330 to
N/mm2 ksi +340°C +645°F
Spring Temper 1300 - 1600 189 - 232 up to up to
N/mm2 ksi +200°C +395°F

Relevant Standards
Inconel 625 is covered by the following standards:

• BS 3076 NA 21

• ASTM B446

• AMS 5666

Equivalent Materials
Inconel 625 is the tradename of Special Metals Group of
Companies and equivalent to:

• W.NR 2.4856

• UNS N06625

• AWS 012

Applications of Inconel 625

Inconel 625 typically finds application in:

• Marine

• Aerospace industries

• Chemical processing

• Nuclear reactors

• Pollution control equipment