Alpha case
In today's world, Alpha case has become a topic of great relevance and interest to a wide sector of society. Whether due to its impact on the economy, its influence on popular culture, or its role in history, Alpha case has become a topic of constant discussion in different areas. Over the years, Alpha case has sparked mixed opinions, heated debates, and has been the subject of numerous studies and investigations. In this article, we will thoroughly explore the role of Alpha case today and discuss its importance in different contexts.
In metallurgy, alpha case is the oxygen-enriched surface phase that occurs when titanium and its alloys are exposed to heated air or oxygen. Alpha case is hard and brittle, and tends to create a series of microcracks that will reduce the metal's performance and its fatigue properties. Alpha case can be minimized or avoided by processing titanium at very deep vacuum levels. However once present on the surface, the currently applied method to remove the alpha case is by the subtractive methods of machining and/or chemical milling. An emerging technique is to subject the metal to an electrochemical treatment in molten salts, such as calcium chloride or lithium chloride at elevated temperatures. This method removes the dissolved oxygen from the alpha case, hence restoring the oxygen-free metal. However, an unwanted consequence of the high temperature treatment is the growth of the grains in the metal. Grain growth may be limited by lowering the molten salt temperature. Alternatively, the metal may be rolling-pressed again to break the large grains into smaller ones.
References
- ^ George, Zheng Chen; Derek J. Fray; Tom W. Farthing (17 April 2007). "Cathodic deoxygenation of the alpha case on titanium and alloys in molten calcium chloride". Metallurgical and Materials Transactions B. 32 (6). Springer Boston: 1041–1052. doi:10.1007/s11663-001-0093-8. S2CID 95616531.
 | This industry-related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |