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Controlled Thermal Expansion Materials


Controlled thermal expansion alloys are iron-nickel alloys that display a really low expansion rate at temperature . These materials are utilized in advanced applications that need metal to be joined to ceramic or glass, and areas where the thermal expansion rates of the materials need to coincide to forestall differential expansion within the joint area. they're utilized in industries like telecommunications, medical, X-ray and laser machines, aerospace engineering, electronics, and cryogenic components.

Controlled Expansion Alloys

Controlled expansion materials are Iron-Nickel alloys that were developed to exhibit a coefficient of thermal expansion within certain ranges.  The purpose of the controlled expansion is to insure good mating and/or seals when mating with other materials.  Controlled expansion alloys that have a thermal expansion coefficient that is similar to glass are commonly referred to as Glass Sealing alloys.

Iron and nickel have extremely similar coefficients of thermal expansion. However, the incorporation of nickel to iron can result in the creation of an alloy within which the coefficient is decreased by an order of magnitude. Research in the 1920s discovered that an iron-nickel alloy containing about 36% nickel displayed almost no thermal expansion at, or near to, room temperature. this kind of material became popular for its invariability or lack of expansion and contraction with temperature varies. By altering the composition of this 36% nickel-base alloy, metallurgists have developed several special materials with unique expansion features to suit specific applications.

JLC Electromet offers many alloys for Controlled Expansion and Glass Sealing applications.  We are capable of offering Alloy 36, Alloy 42Alloy 52, Dumet.

Controlled expansion alloys and glass sealing alloys are available in two categories:

  1. Alloys having a very low expansion coefficient within a certain temperature range are classified as Low Thermal Expansion alloys.  Electronic devices and thermostats commonly use the low expansion alloys such as Alloy 36 and Alloy 42. Kovar, another low expansion alloy, can provide a strong hermetic seal to hard borosilicate glasses and ceramic materials. 
  2. Alloys that offer the same expansion coefficients as the glass or ceramic that they are being used with are referred to as Matching Expansion.  Matching Expansion alloys are commonly used in the electronics industry.  The most common alloys with Matching Expansion would be Alloy 42 or Alloy 52.
  3. Alloy 36 has the lowest thermal expansion coefficient of the Iron-Nickel Alloys.  Alloy 36 is available in diameter size of .0005” to .025” in wire form.  Alloy 42 is offered in diameter sizes .001” to .020”.  Alloy 52 is available in diameter sizes of .0005” to .060” and the size range for Dumet and Kovar is .001” to .040”.  All these materials are also available as stranded and insulated or as ribbon.
  4. Dumet is a glass sealing alloys used for lamps.  Dumet has a Nickel Iron core with a Copper cladding.  In addition to Kovar, we offer other alloys that can be used for glass sealing such as OFHC Copper, Molybdenum, Nickel A/200, Nickel 205 or Nickel 211.

Alloy 36 / K93603 / ASTM F1684

Widely known under several trades names, this grade of controlled expansion alloy is a 36% nickel-iron alloy. It displays a near-zero rate of thermal expansion from about –100 °C up to 200 °C. This is about a tenth of the expansion rate of carbon steels. Alloy 36 also shows high retention of toughness and strength at cryogenic temperatures, making it ideal for a range of low temperatures or low expansion applications. The nickel-iron alloy is perfectly suited to areas where dimensional changes because of temperature must be minimal, such as radio and electronic devices, tooling for aerospace composites, and structural members in precision equipment such as lasers, thermostats, measuring devices, and cryogenic instrumentation. Alloy 36 can also be utilized along with a high expansion material to produce mechanical movement with temperature in thermomechanical controls and switchgear.

Alloy 42 / K94100 / ASTM F30

Alloy 42 is a binary nickel-iron alloy containing about 41% nickel. This nickel-iron alloy grade displays a low and normally consistent coefficient of thermal expansion across the range of 20-300 °C. This enables its application in glass-to-metal or ceramic-to-metal sealing applications and tooling for aerospace composites. Alloy 42 also has a coefficient of thermal expansion matched to silicon, and ceramic materials such as beryllia, alumina, and vitreous glass compounds. It can be found as a sealing material in semiconductor packages, CRT electron guns, thermostat rods, microelectronic components, electronic tubes, vacuum devices, and electric industrial lamps.

Alloy 52 / N14052

Alloy 52 is a nickel-iron alloy which contains 52% nickel and 48% iron and is extensively used in the telecommunications sector. It also finds application in a wide range of electronic applications, especially for glass seals.

Alloy K / K94610 / ASTM F15

This nickel-iron-cobalt alloy has 29% nickel with a 17% cobalt addition. Its composition is tightly controlled within narrow limits to ensure precise and universal thermal expansion and mechanical features. This helps the alloy material provide high integrity glass-to-metal and ceramic-to-metal seals in applications requiring resistance to thermal shock and reliability. Alloy K is frequently used for the production of hermetic seals with both the harder borosilicate glasses and alumina-type ceramic materials. It finds wide-ranging applications in the production of transistors and diodes for lids and closures in a range of hybrid electronic circuit packages and also in the production of microwave tubes.

Technical Data for Controlled Expansion Alloys

Coefficient of Thermal Expansion
  Alloy 36 Alloy 42 Alloy 52 Alloy K
30-150 °C (µm/m°C) 1.2 - 2.7      
30-300 °C (µm/m°C)   4.0 - 4.7    
30-400 °C (µm/m°C)       4.6 - 5.2
30-450 °C (µm/m°C)   6.7 - 7.4 9.7 - 10.2 5.1 - 5.5
30-550 °C (µm/m°C)     10.0 - 10.5  
Physical Properties
  Alloy 36 Alloy 42 Alloy 52 Alloy K
Density (g/cm3) 8.13 8.15 8.30 8.25
Melting Point (°C) 1450 1425 1425 1450
Curie Point (°C) 230 330 510 425
Thermal conductivity (W/m°C) 10.5 12.5 13.4 17.0
Specific Heat (J/g°C) 0.51 0.50 0.50 0.50
Young’s Modulus (MPA) 140,000 145,000 165,000 139,000

Controlled Expansion Alloys Market

The worldwide Controlled Expansion Alloys market size in terms of its value, production and consumption is split into the breakdown of data status and forecast by manufacturers, region, type and application. Also worth analysing is the the market status, market share, growth rate, future trends, market drivers, opportunities and challenges, risks and entry barriers, sales channels, distributors and Porter’s Five Forces Analysis within the Controlled Expansion Alloy market. The present market competitive landscape and corresponding detailed analysis of the major vendor and key players in the market is worth noticing.

This provides a valuable source of insightful data for business strategists and competitive analysis of the global Controlled Expansion Alloys Market. It also provides the Controlled Expansion Alloys industry an overview with growth analysis and futuristic cost, revenue and many other aspects as required by any exporter. The research analysts have provided an elaborate description of the value chain and its distributor analysis worldwide. The study of Controlled Expansion Alloys market provides a lot of comprehensive data which enhances the understanding, scope and application of the market.

Market Segmentation

The Controlled Expansion Alloys market is segmented by type of controlled expansion alloys into:

The Controlled Expansion Alloys market is segmented by application into the following industries

  • Electronics & Semiconductor
  • Aerospace & Defense
  • Telecommunications
  • Medical Industry
  • Others

Global Controlled Expansion Alloys Market

The global controlled expansion alloy market is analysed by region and by competition.

Regional Analysis

The global Controlled Expansion Alloys market Regional Analysis is the analysed and market size information as provided by regions and countries worldwide. This includes country-wise and region-wise market size for the periods of financial years. It also includes the market size and forecast by the type of controlled expansion alloys and by the application of controlled expansion alloys including segmentation in terms of sales and revenue for all the periods globally.

The key regions that cover the Controlled Expansion Alloys market include North America, U.S., Canada, Europe, Germany, France, U.K., Italy, Russia, Asia-Pacific, China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia, Taiwan, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Philippines, Vietnam, Latin America, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Middle East & Africa, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, U.A.E.

For the most comprehensive understanding of market dynamics, the global Controlled Expansion Alloys market is being analyzed across the key geographies namely: United States, China, Europe, Japan, South-east Asia, India and others. Each of these regions is analyzed on basis of market findings across major countries in these regions for a macro-level understanding of the controlled expansion alloy market.

Competitive Analysis

The competitive analysis of the companies in the controlled expansion alloys market which identifies the various key manufacturers of the market is extremely helpful. It helps in the understanding of the strategies and collaborations that the companies are focusing on to combat competition in the controlled expansion alloy market. The comprehensive reporting of the controlled expansion alloy market  provides a significant microscopic look at this market in extreme detail. This competitive analysis of the controlled expansion alloy market can identify the footprints of the manufacturers by knowing about the global revenue of manufacturers, the global prices of manufacturers, and sales by manufacturers during the forecast periods.

The major players in global Controlled Expansion Alloys market include VDM Metals, Carpenter Technology, Nippon Yakin Kogyo, Hitachi Metals, Imphy Alloys, Allegheny, Sandvik, Haynes Goodfellow, Ed Fagan Inc. (EFI), Mitsubishi Material, JLC Electromet, Deutsche Nickel GmbH, Vacuumschmelze, Columbia Metals, PHYNICX, Tianjin Baienwei, Beijing Beiye.

The influence of the Controlled Expansion Alloys market is:

Controlled Expansion and Glass Sealing Nickel Alloys are nickel-iron based alloys that are required for applications where a hermetic seal is required between metal and glass or ceramic. They are also used for applications where a certain thermal expansion is required over a given temperature range.

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