SHAPE MEMORY

ALLOYS

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 Objectives
• To investigate the unique properties of an alloy
called Nitinol
• To design an experiment using Nitinol
• To understand the connection between Nitinol’s
atomic structure and its physical characteristics
• To learn about Nitinol’s applications

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 A smart alloy

NiTiNOL
• Made of Nickel and Titanium at Naval Ordnance Laboratory

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 Nitinol—a smart material?
• Bend it
• Heat it
• What happens?

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 Shape Memory Alloy (SMA)
• Nitinol is a “shape
memory alloy”
• What does that
mean?
• What is happening
at the nanoscale?

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 Phases of matter

Solid Liquid Gas

strong bonds weak bonds no bonds

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Martensite phase of Nitinol

• Lower temperature
• Very flexible
• Can easily be
deformed (changed)

Martensite Deformed
Martensite
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 Austenite phase of Nitinol

• Higher temperature
• Rigid
• Has defined shape

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Solid phases of Nitinol

→heat

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What you observed

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What happened at the atomic level

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 Nitinol

(Click on image to play.)

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Other ways to heat it?

→heat

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 Can you “retrain” it?

Can you give

Nitinol a new
shape memory?

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 Properties of Nitinol
• Shape memory alloy
• Elastic
• Does not react with
water or oxygen
• Can be used in the
body

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 Austenite temperature
• Slight difference in ratio
of Ni to Ti can change
the temperature from
-50°C to +95°C
• Engineered for different
functions

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 Think!

• How do you
think Nitinol
might be useful?

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 Medical applications
• Needles
• Orthodontic devices
• Guidewires
• Catheters
• Stents

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Other applications

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 Summary
1. Learned about
Nitinol’s properties
2. Heated it
3. Found other ways of
heating it
4. Retrained it
5. Learned about its
applications

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