Metal Science and Heat Treatment

Vol. 52, Nos. 9 10, 2010

UDC 669.018.472:629.73

PRECISION CASTABLE ALLOY OF INVAR CLASS

FOR OPERATING TEMPERATURES OF UP TO 500C
V. I. Chermenskii,1 I. V. Konchakovskii,1 S. V. Grachev,1 A. V. Maiorov,2 and P. S. Kuchin2
Translated from Metallovedenie i Termicheskaya Obrabotka Metallov, No. 10, pp. 50 53, October, 2010.

A castable invar alloy based on the Fe Ni Co C system is developed. The highest average values of the
coefficient of linear thermal expansion of the alloy are 5.2 10 6 K 1, 6.3 10 6 K 1, and 7.4 10 6 K 1
in the temperature ranges of 20 400, 20 450, and 20 500C, respectively. The alloy is designed for mold
casting of parts with elevated heat resistance including those for operation in a couple with ceramics, carbon
plastics, and other polymer composite materials (PCM).

Key words: castable invar alloys, temperature coefficient of linear expansion, thermal size stability.

specified level of invar effect and other required properties of

cast invars and superinvars.
In the recent years the development of cast invars and
superinvars was directed at solving problems connected with
the operating capacity of intermediate (temperature compensating) frames for quartz and glass ceramic panels of the
head part of aircrafts. This research gave alloys with low
CLTE in the ranges of 20 200 to 20 350C and solved the
problem of temperature-size compatibility of metallic frames
and nonmetallic shell. This is a result of maximum matching
between the CLTE of specific alloys and quartz and glass ceramics under the heat load mentioned. In future the required
range of operating temperatures may reach 20 500C, and
this is en incentive for further research.
In this connection high-technology cast invar alloys with
hydrogen additives attract special interest. Among the developed invars and superinvars [2] they are the most promising
for making large and complex-configuration load-carrying
construction members operating in a wide range of negative
and high temperatures. Hydrogen alloying of invar and
superinvar alloys improves substantially their casting, welding, and cutting process properties and makes it possible to
cast shapes virtually without restricting the mass or the size.
Foreign researches study actively such carbon-bearing alloys
with a low CLTE (up to 5 10 8 K 1 ) in a temperature
range of 0 200C [ISO 2892-73(A)] and in a range of up to
400C [3].
Our earlier invars 31NKUL-1 and 31NKUL-2 [4] are no
inferior to such high-temperature alloys. Their mean CLTE
does not exceed 3.5 10 6 K 1 at a temperature ranging
from 60 to 300C and from 20 to 300C and

INTRODUCTION
Precision alloys with specified thermal expansion
[termed precision alloys with specified coefficient of linear
thermal expansion (CLTE) in GOST 10994] are out of competition from the standpoint of lowering of stresses in
metal-nonmetal coupling units both under stationary and
nonstationary operating conditions [1]. This is explainable
by the anomaly of their thermal properties known in scientific literature as the invar effect. This means that in specific
temperature ranges invar, and especially superinvar, alloys
have a CLTE an order of magnitude lower than any other metallic structural material, which makes their sizes stable under conditions of heating or cooling. Invar alloys have a
CLTE close to that of ceramic, polymer, and composite materials and this makes it possible to solve problems of temperature-and-size compatibility of materials of different kinds in
high-technology articles.
In the middle 1970s researchers of the Ural Polytechnic
Institute managed to prove the possibility of creation of precision cast alloys with minimum temperature coefficient of
linear expansion. It has been assumed earlier that invar alloys
can only be deformable, whereas in a cast structure the CLTE
cannot be low due to segregation of elements. A study of the
problem of optimization of physicochemical and process factors has made it possible to find conditions for ensuring a
1

Ural State Federal University in the Name of the First President

of Russia B. N. Eltsyn, Ekaterinburg, Russia (e-mail:
mvd@mtf.ustu.ru).
Linvar Research and Production Center, Ekaterinburg, Russia
(e-mail: linvar@mail.ru).

504
0026-0673/10/0910-0504 2010 Springer Science + Business Media, Inc.

Precision Castable Alloy of Invar Class for Operating Temperatures of up to 500C

505

TABLE 1. Chemical Composition of Earlier Developed Alloys

Content of elements, wt.%
Alloy
Ni

Co

Ce

Fe

31NKUL-1

30.0 31.5

8.3 9.3

0.75 1.5

0.05 0.30

Res.

0.40

0.50

0.02

0.02

31NKUL-2

30.0 31.5

8.3 9.3

0.75 1.5

Res.

0.40

0.50

0.02

0.02

4.5 10 6 K 1 at a temperature ranging from 60 to 350C

and from 20 to 350C. The chemical compositions of these
alloys are presented in Table 1.
On the whole, the invar, physical, mechanical, and
thermophysical properties of alloys 31NKUL-1,2 meet the
new aim of the study. But the experience of production of
castings from these alloys has shown that their crack resistance is insufficient for large (> 0.5 m) aircraft frames. This
is connected with the high content of cobalt (8.5 0.5%),
which widens the interval of the invar property due to raising
the Curie point and simultaneously causes formation of
cracks, especially in thin-walled and large-size castings. In
addition, cobalt increases the cost of the castings by 8 10%
per 1% of its content on the average.
In this connection, we decided to study the following
composition (in wt.%): Fe (32 34) Ni (6.0 8.0) Co
(0.75 1.5) C. Such an alloy contains less cobalt than the
31NKUL grades, which raises the crack resistance of the
castings to the required level. The nickel content is elevated
in order to preserve (and event to raise somewhat) the Curie
point. Homogeneity of the invar austenite in cooling to negative temperatures is guaranteed. The total content of Ni + Co
is the most favorable for minimizing the CLTE. Carbon
and the other elements are contained in an amount ensuring
the possibility of obtaining low CLTE, which we have
shown in [4].
METHODS OF STUDY
Solution of the problems posed in the present work requires the use of informative and experimental methods.
Theoretical analysis of the possibility of obtaining minimum
possible values of CLTE is performed by simulating the dependence of the value of linear expansion as a function of the
carbon content on the basis of the principle of additivity of
CLTE in heterogeneous systems. The reliability of analysis
of the dependence of CLTE on the temperature and on the
content of carbon and of the minimization factors was
checked under laboratory and industrial conditions.
We melted blend materials of commercial purity that
have been used for many years in the production of carbonless cast invars and superinvars, i.e., nickel of grade N1
(GOST 849), low-carbon steels 10895 and 10880 (GOST
11036), ferromanganese FMn80 (GOST 1415), ferrosilicon
FS75 (GOST 1415), and mish metal Mts40 (TU 48-4-28073)
containing REM. Carbon was introduced into the alloys in

Mn

Si

the form of pure iron (semiproduct of the production of

ferroalloys). The possibility of obtaining the required values
of CLTE in the alloy was studied for various heats differing
in the content of the main components. In order to work in
the range of the most serviceable compositions we varied the
content of the elements in quite wide ranges, namely, 0 9%
cobalt, 31 37% nickel, and from < 0.05 to 2.0% carbon.
The alloys were melted in open induction furnaces under
laboratory and industrial conditions. Cast specimens for dilatometric and metallographic analysis were fabricated by cutting from the castings or by vacuum pumping into quartz
tubes. Heat treatment was performed by the earlier developed two-stage regime, i.e., 4-h hold at 950 1000C and air
cooling followed by high-temperature tempering at 600
650C for 2 h. The first stage of such treatment is performed
for homogenizing the cast ingot, the second stage is aimed at
removing stresses and stabilizing the structure (this regime
was later used for production of cast frames).
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The chemical composition of the alloys and the values of
their CLTE are presented in Table 2.
We started the tests with alloy 10. The content of Ni and
Co in this alloy was equal to that of the chosen composition
but the carbon additive was absent. After casting, alloy 10
had CLTE20 100 = 1 10 6 K 1 in the range of 20 100C,
which met the minimum specified values of the GOST 10944
Standard. The carbon alloys in cast state had quite high
CLTE ( 8 10 6 K 1 ). This was explainable by the high
carbon content in the matrix and rapidly developing crystallization of the specimens. However, the effect of the heat treatment on the carbon alloys was quite favorable.
The CLTE of the carbonless alloy 10 increased abruptly
after the heat treatment starting with 400C. The carbonbearing alloys had CLTE 2 3 times inferior to that alloy 10
at the temperatures of up to 100 200C and were superior
to it at 400C and higher temperatures. Physical explanation
of the positive role of carbon in our case involves the fact
that it widens the temperature range of the invar effect, because it is known [5, 6] to raise the Curie point. As for the effect of cobalt (Table 2), we obtained quite acceptable results
in alloys 50U and 60U with 6.4 and 8.0% Co respectively.
With allowance for the cost of the alloys, the upper boundary
(8% Co, alloy 60U) is not preferable from the standpoint of
the required values of CLTE20 400, 450, 500, because at 6.4%

506

V. I. Chermenskii et al.

TABLE 2. Chemical Composition and CLTE of the Alloys Studied

Mean CLTE 106, K 1, in temperature ranges, C

Content of elements, wt.%

Alloy

10
20U
30U
40U
50U
60U
70U

Ni

Co

32.9
37.0
36.8
35.0
33.2
31.9
31.0

6.2
0.0
2.0
4.3
6.4
8.0
9.0

< 0.05
0.93
0.98
1.20
1.00
1.00
2.00

Mn

Si

20 100

20 200

20 300

20 400

20 450

20 500

0.32
0.20
0.18
0.17
0.18
0.22
0.30

0.29
0.40
0.36
0.37
0.32
0.32
1.00

1.55
4.05
4.53
4.31
3.76
3.02
3.00

1.70
4.18
4.50
4.03
3.61
2.95
3.26

3.22
4.25
4.48
4.05
3.4
2.94
3.71

6.31
6.26
5.86
5.28
4.91
4.82
5.81

7.50
7.22
6.81
6.25
5.91
5.88
6.93

8.63
8.21
7.86
7.38
7.08
7.05
7.90

Co (alloy 50U) we obtained virtually equal values of these

coefficients.
When studying the influence of nickel, we established
that the most acceptable concentration of this element was
the one chosen in the beginning of our study. In order to obtain the required CLTE the nickel content should neither be
increased no decreased with respect to the chosen range of
32 34%. Additives of carbon and silicon exceeding the initially chosen concentrations would be useful for the casting
properties of the alloy but influence negatively the
CLTE20 400, 450, 500 (alloy 70U in Table 2). In this case the
unfavorable growth in the CLTE cannot be prevented even
by raising the cobalt content to 9%.
It was important to study the relation between the
microstructure of the alloys and the values of CLTE obtained
after heat treatment and meeting our task (alloys 50U and
60U). We used the results of the study of the conditions of
minimization of CLTE in invar alloys with carbon [7, 8] and
chose the volume fraction of graphite formed in these alloys
as an appropriate criterion. We established that this quantity
has an optimum value depending on the composition and on
the conditions of structure formation; in one and the same alloy a minimum possible value of CLTE is hard to obtain both
at too low and at too high volume fractions of graphite.
The matrix of the alloys is represented by invar austenite
with dendritic structure. Results obtained for laboratory and
industrial heats show that at the used rates of cooling of the
castings the dispersity of the matrix does not affect substantially the CLTE. The graphite inclusions have a compact
globular or vermicular shape.
Control check of the CLTE of the alloys in ranges beginning with negative temperatures showed that the values presented in Table 2 for the ranges beginning with 20C are virtually the same as those for the ranges beginning with
60C. The structure of the alloys remains invariable and
contains no martensite phase.
Thus the compositions of 50U and 60U meet the
sought-for properties and we have taken them as the base
variant. As a result of the subsequent field tests we chose the
following proportion of the main components (in wt.%):
32.0 34.0 Ni, 6.0 8.0 Co, 0.75 1.5 C. In addition, the al-

loy should contain low amounts of Mn and Si, possess commercial purity with respect to the other impurities, and contain cerium and other REM in an amount of 0.05 0.30%.
After heat treatment the castings has a mean CLTE no
higher than 5.2 10 6 K 1 for the temperatures ranging
from 60 to + 400C or from 20 to 400C, no higher than
6.3 10 6 K 1 for the ranges from 60 to + 450C or from
20 to 450C, and no higher than 7.4 10 6 K 1 for the
ranges from 60 to + 500C or from 20 to 500C.
The Curie point of the alloy is 625 K (352C); the modulus of longitudinal elasticity is 125 GPa; the ultimate rupture
strength (at room temperature) is 370C, the elongation is
8%, and the HB hardness is 130 kgf/mm2.
In addition to the scientific tasks we have solved a number of problems connected with the process of production of
castings from the alloy developed. The results of the tests
performed in the present work, the available production data,
and the results of shop tests allowed us to suggest a process
for casting preforms by a centrifugal method and for chill
casting and to fabricate a series of pilot castings.
The expedience of the principle of minimization of
CLTE in carbon-bearing invars at elevated temperatures
based on optimum combination of alloying elements raising
the Curie point has been confirmed. The purity of the blend
materials and the modes of melting, casting and heat treatment are important factors of the technology.
CONCLUSIONS
We have studied a precision cast alloy of the Fe Ni
Co C system with low CLTE in a wide temperature range
ending with 500C and worked out a process for fabricating
castings from this alloy. The alloy contains 32 34% Ni and
6 8% Co, is alloyed with 0.75 1.5% C, bears low contents
of Mn and Si, and possesses commercial purity with respect
to the other impurities. The values of the CLTE in the temperature ranges of 20 400, 20 450, and 20 500C ensure reliable enough operation of the alloy upon heating in a
couple with structural glass ceramics. Its physical, mechanical, thermophysical, and process properties are comparable
on the whole with the properties of other cast invars.

Precision Castable Alloy of Invar Class for Operating Temperatures of up to 500C

Foreign experience proves good prospects of making

precision large-size articles such as substrates, mandrels, and
bulk press molds for vacuum, press, and autoclave forming
of polymer composite materials. Our experience of production of thermally stable fittings from invar alloys with carbon
for making carbon plastic reflectors for satellite antennas [4]
and casing parts of helicopters allows us to infer that the operating and technological characteristics of the studied alloy
are suitable for using it in the production of composite structures from high-temperature PCM.
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