| We offer products in a variety of
nickel-titanium alloys to tailor the thermo-mechanical performance
to specific applications. Alloys C and H are typically used
for permanent fastening in extreme temperature environments.
Alloys D is used for permanent and demateable fastening in more
benign thermal environments. Alloys N and G are used for actuators
and temporary clamping applications.
Alloy C components are shipped and stored in liquid nitrogen.
They recover to their memory shape on warming to room temperature.
This is a benefit when working with large assemblies or extremely
heat sensitive components. Alloy C applies clamping force over
an operating temperature range of -65°C to +300°C.
Alloy H is our most broadly used alloy for fastening and sealing
applications. This NiTiNb alloy begins to recover at about 50°C
and reaches full clamping force at 165°C. Once installed,
Alloy H parts maintain clamping force over a temperature range
of -65°C to +300°C. Cooling parts to below -120°C
with liquid nitrogen will cause them to loosen their grip for
disassembly or adjustment.
Alloy D is a traditional nitinol alloy. It is used for fastening
applications with less demanding operating temperatures. This
alloy begins to recover at about 40°C, reaches full clamping
force at 100°C and offers an operating range of 0°C
to 200°C. The low recovery temperature necessitates extra
care in shipping and handling of Alloy D parts prior to installation.
Since Alloy D only requires heating to 100°C for installation,
it can be installed on some assemblies Alloy H cannot. Another
potential advantage of this alloy is that it loosens at -50°C,
allowing removal with HFC spray refrigerant or CO2/dry ice.
Alloy G is used primarily for single cycle actuators. On the
first heating cycle, Alloy G parts begin to recover their memory
shape at about 105°C, reaching full recovery about 4°C
above that. This sharp temperature response is advantageous
for ambient temperature sensing actuators. The temperature rise
required to drive full actuation increases with the resisting
load the actuator must move, so the full actuation temperature
depends on the system design. Stress in an Alloy G part will
go to zero on cooling to about 30°C. On subsequent heating,
the part will begin to recover at about 65°C.
Alloy N behaves the same as Alloy G, except all the temperatures
are shifted up by 25°C. Recovery starts at 130°C. The
stress drops to zero on cooling below 55°C. On subsequent
heating, the part will begin to recover at about 90°C. As
with Alloy G, most applications of Alloy N are for single cycle
actuators.
On this website you will only find drawings for parts produced
with Alloy H. We produce standard and custom parts from these
other alloys as well. Please contact us for additional documentation.
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