Development and Analysis of Advanced Functional Alloys (Manufacturing and Investigation of FeCrCo and NiCrMo Alloys)

Abstract

This work comprises of research on development and analysis of two selected alloys based on economic viewpoint, namely; FeCrCo magnetic alloy and NiCrMo dental casting alloy. The research was initiated for compliance to the United Nations guidelines for the Global Goals. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are the goals of United Nations for peace and prosperity for the people and the planet. The SDGs are an urgent call for action to end poverty and improve health, economy and education. In order to comply with the SDGs, this project was aimed to attend the three global goals including; i) Goal-3 for Good Health and Well Being, ii) Goal-7 for Affordable and Clean Energy and iii) Goal-9 for Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure. Accordingly this research was carried out on low cost FeCrCo magnetic alloy and NiCrMo dental casting alloy. FeCrCo alloy is the most economical alloy for permanent magnet making as it uses low cost elements; however, magnetic energy product can be produced that is at par with that of Alnico magnets. Similarly, NiCrMo alloy is also a very economical dental casting alloy that possess properties equivalent to that of gold alloys, used for the purpose of dental restorations. Both the alloys are technically very suitable for poor and developing nations for providing economical solutions. Economical processing and production of FeCrCo magnets can contribute to the efficient high speed motors and for affordable and clean energy devices. Also this research conducted on NiCrMo dental casting alloy is a remarkable contribution towards affordable dental health care. FeCrCo is a typical deformable magnetic alloy. In this research, the FeCrCo alloy with low cobalt content (12 wt. %) was developed, processed and analyzed. Effect of minor alloying with silicon was investigated, where enhancement of remanence ratio and improvement in squareness of the MH curve was noted with the double isothermal thermomagnetic processing. Taguchi design approach was utilized for properties optimization. Signal-to-noise ratio mean plots demonstrated that best magnetic characteristics, maximum energy product (BHmax) up to 3.89 MGOe, achieved in samples that were forged, thermomagnetically processed and thermally aged for 24 hour treatment cycle. NiCrMo alloy being an economical alloy is popular for dental restorations. Currently NiCrMo alloys are in use by dental labs that contain beryllium in its composition, which is carcinogenic in nature. This research work was conducted on manufacturing and development of the NiCrMo dental casting alloy with minor additions of titanium, cerium and boron to enhance strength, corrosion and tribological characteristics and to decrease the melting temperature for ease of fabrication. Novelty is that the addition of 0.2 percent Boron with 0.4 percent cerium in the base NiCrMo dental casting alloy is found with outstanding combination of characteristics, well suited for dental restorations. The alloy developed has economic significance, especially, for poor and developing nations as the NiCrMo alloy can be used as replacement for gold based costly alloys. The work done could also help in avoiding Be-containing NiCrMo alloys and is a contribution to the bulk material sciences.