National Bureau of Standards Library, E-01 Admin. Bldg. IHW 9 1 50CO NBS MONOGRAPH 106 Nickel and Its Alloys U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS THE NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS The National Bureau of Standards^ provides measurement and technical information services essential to the efficiency and effectiveness of the work of the Nation's scientists and engineers. The Bureau serves also as a focal point in the Federal Government for assuring maximum application of the physical and engineering sciences to the advancement of technology in industry and commerce. To accomplish this mission, the Bureau is organized into three institutes covering broad program areas of research and services: THE INSTITUTE FOR BASIC STANDARDS . provides the central basis within the United States for a complete and consistent system of physical measurements, coordinates that system with the measurement systems of other nations, and furnishes essential services leading to accurate and uniform physical measurements throughout the Nation's scientific community, industry, and commerce. This Institute comprises a series of divisions, each serving a classical subject matter area: —Applied Mathematics—Electricity—Metrology—Mechanics—Heat—Atomic Physics—Physical Chemistry—Radiation Physics—Laboratory Astrophysics^—Radio Standards Laboratory,^ which includes Radio Standards Physics and Radio Standards Engineering—Office of Standard Refer- ence Data. THE INSTITUTE FOR MATERIALS RESEARCH . conducts materials research and provides associated materials services including mainly reference materials and data on the properties of ma- terials. Beyond its direct interest to the Nation's scientists and engineers, this Institute yields services which are essential to the advancement of technology in industry and commerce. This Institute is or- ganized primarily by technical fields: —Analytical Chemistry—Metallurgy—Reactor Radiations—Polymers—Inorganic Materials—Cry- ogenics'—Office of Standard Reference Materials. THE INSTITUTE FOR APPLIED TECHNOLOGY . provides technical services to promote the use of available technology and to facilitate technological innovation in industry and government. The principal elements of this Institute are: —-Building Research—Electronic Instrumentation—Technical Analysis—Center for Computer Sci- ences and Technology—Textile and Apparel Technology Center—Office of Weights and Measures —Office of Engineering Standards Services—Office of Invention and Innovation—Office of Vehicle Systems Research—Clearinghouse for Federal Scientific and Technical Information^—Materials Evaluation Laboratory—NBS/GSA Testing Laboratory. 1 Headquarters and Laboratories at Gaithersburg, Maryland, unless otherwise noted; mailing address Washington, D. C, 20234. - Located at Boulder, Colorado, 80302. 3 Located at 5285 Port Royal Road, Springfield, Virginia 2215L UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE . C. R. Smith, Secretary NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS • A. V. Astin, Director Nickel and Its Alloys Samuel J. Rosenberg Institute for Materials Research National Bureau of Standards Washington, D.C. 20234 National Bureau of Standards Monograph 106 Issued May, 1968 (Supersedes NBS Circular 592) For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Governme nt Printing Office Washington, D.C., 20402 - Price $1.25 Foreword Publications by the National Bureau of Standards include a series of Monographs (previously desig- nated as Circulars), each of which represents a compilation and critical review of available information on a particular subject. Metallurgical Circulars, each dealing with a particular metal and its alloys, have been prominent in this series. Circular 100, entitled "Nickel and its Alloys," authored by P. D. Merica, was published in 1921 when expansion and growth of the nickel industry were becoming noticeable. A second edition (revised by E. C. Groesbeck) was issued in 1924. At the close of World War II the subject was again reviewed and Circular 485, written by M. R. Meyerson, was published in 1950. However, much information about the strategic ele- ment, nickel, had been developed during World War II but was not yet available for publication in Circular 485. The phenomenal expansion of the North American nickel industry since 1950, the release of some of the previously restricted information, the development of new theories of alloying and heat treatment, and the development of new alloys to meet industrial requirements of ever-increasing severity made it desir- able again to revise the Nickel Circular. That revision. Circular 592, was written by J. G. Thompson and published in 1958. During the relatively few years since the publication of the last nickel circular, development of nickel alloys and steels has continued so that considerable information needed to be incorporated in a revised edi- tion, and much old data needed to be updated. This task was assigned to S. J. Rosenberg, formerly Chief of the Engineering Metallurgy Section, Metallurgy Division, Institute for Materials Research, of the National Bureau of Standards. The current revision, like the previous one, was sponsored by The International Nickel Company, In- corporated, and was written at the National Bureau of Standards under the Bureau's Research Associate plan. This revision represents a review of the literature through 1965 and includes some 1966 references. A. "V. ASTIN, Director Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 67-62384 Trademarks A number of alloys discussed in this compilation are marketed under the following various trademarks: Trademark Owner ALUMEL Hoskins Manufacturing Company CARPENTER STAINLESS NO. 20 The Carpenter Steel Company CARPENTER 426 The Carpenter Steel Company CHROMEL Hoskins Manufacturing Company COBENIUM Wilbur B. Driver Company CONPERNIK Westinghouse Electric Corporation COR-TEN United States Steel Corporation CUFENLOY Phelps Dodge Corporation DISCALOY Westinghouse Electric Corporation DURANICKEL The International Nickel Company, Inc. DYNALLOY Alan Wood Steel Corporation DYNAVAR Precision Metals Division ELGILOY Elgin National Watch Company ELINVAR Hamilton Watch Company GEMINOL Driver-Harris Company HASTELLOY Union Carbide Corporation HI-STEEL Inland Steel Corporation HIPERNIK Westinghouse Electric Corporation HP Republic Steel Company HY-TUF Crucible Steel Company ILLIUM Stainless Foundry & Engineering Inc. INCOLOY The International Nickel Company, Inc. INCONEL The International Nickel Company, Inc. INVAR Soc. Anon, de Commentry-Fourchambault et Decaziville (Acieries d'Imphy) KANTHAL The Kanthal Corporation KOVAR Westinghouse Electric Corporation MAGARI-R Bethlehem Steel Corporation MANGANIN Driver-Harris Company MINOVAR The International Nickel Company, Inc. MONEL The International Nickel Company, Inc. MONIMAX Allegheny Ludlum Steel Corporation NICROTUNG Westinghouse Electric Corporation NIMOCAST The International Nickel Company, Inc. NIMONIC The International Nickel Company, Inc. NISILOY The International Nickel Company, Inc. NI-SPAN-C The International Nickel Company, Inc. PERMALLOY Allegheny Ludlum Steel Corporation PERMANICKEL The International Nickel Company, Inc. REFRACTALOY Westinghouse Electric Corporation RENE 41 Allvac Metals Corporation (Division of Teledyne) RODAR Wilbur B. Harris Company SD The International Nickel Company, Inc. SIMINEX Allegheny Ludlum Steel Corporation SEALMET Allegheny Ludlum Steel Corporation STAINLESS STEEL W United States Steel Corporation STAINLESS STEEL 17-4PH Armco Steel Corporation SUPERMALLOY Allegheny Ludlum Steel Corporation T-1 United States Steel Corporation TRI-TEN United States Steel Corporation TRW TRW, Inc. UDIMET Special Metals Corporation I UNITEMP Universal Cyclops Specialty Steel Division, Cyclops Corporation USS STRUX United States Steel Corporation WASPALLOY Pratt and Whitney Aircraft WELCON Japanese Steel Works, Ltd. WEL-TEN Yawata Iron & Steel Company, Ltd. YOLOY Youngstown Sheet & Tube Company iii 1 Contents Page Fag(| Foreword ii 2.5. Technology 5(1 Trademarks iii a. Melting and casting 5( 1. Introduction 1 b. Hot-forming (forging, rolling, extrusion) 5( 1.1. History 1 c. Cold-forming (drawing, shearing, punching, 1.2. Occurrence, minerals, ores 2 spinning) 5]' 1.3. Recovery of nickel from its ores 4 d. Welding, brazing, soldering 5] 1.4. Statistics of production and consumption 6 e. Annealing 5J 1.5. Available forms of nickel 6 f. Pickling 51 2. Nickel—Properties and uses 9 g. Machining 5< 2.1. Physical properties 9 h. Grinding, polishing, buffing 54 a. General 9 2.6. Metallography of nickel 5<. (1) Atomic number and weight—isotopes 9 a. Selection of specimens 5< (2) Nuclear properties 10 b. Preparation of specimens 5! (3) Crystal form and lattice constant 10 (1) Grinding 5i' (4) Density 10 (2) Rough polishing 5! (5) Miscellaneous physical properties 12 (3) Final polishing 51 b. Optical properties 12 (4) Electropolishing 51 c. Thermal properties 14 c. Etching 51 (1) Melting and boiling points; heat of fusion; 2.7. Uses of nickel 5(' vapor pressure 14 a. Coatings 51 (2) Specific heat and heat capacity 14 (1) Electroplating 51 (8) Thermal expansion 15 (2) Electroless plating 51 (4) Thermal conductivity 17 (3) Electroforming 51 (5) Thermionic properties 17 (4) Nickel cladding 6( (6) Recrystallization temperature 18 (5) Sprayed and vapor-deposited coatings 6: d. Electrical properties 19 b. Nickel powders 6: (1) Electrical resistivity 19 c. End uses of nickel and nickel-surfaced (2) Thermal electromotive force 21 materials 6: e. Magnetic properties 22 , Nonferrous alloys 6: