The Development of New Vacuum Processes for Metallurgy
Drives Technological Advances in Future Markets

2. Vacuum metallurgy for the airplane of the future. Concealed behind the technical term, „vacuum melting and controlled solidification“ as well as „electron beam physical vapor deposition“ are path-breaking technologies for the energy saving airplane of the future. These vacuum metallurgical processes allow large-scale mass roduction of turbine blades, which reduce fuel consumption by up to 30% and emissions by 15% and more.

Vacuum metallurgy is presently entering a new phase, wherein it is assessing the experience gained from continuously developing established processes and joining together new process combinations. Advanced vacuum processes such as steel degassing and ladle metallurgy, melting and remelting, as well as casting and metal-powder technology, have led to high-quality metallurgical products tailored to meet the ever-increasing demands imposed upon them. New processes are being developed that will yield further improvements as well as entirely new products.

The use of these metal-making processes in modern, efficiently functioning production systems greatly reduces costs. The recycling of revert from the processing of costly materials contributes to the economy´s cost-effectiveness. Examples of the products that have been derived from these technologies include highly alloyed special steels and superalloys, refractory and reactive metals with ultrahigh purity and a fine grain structure, precision castings with directional and single-crystal structures, forgings in near net shape, and highpurity powder for homogeneous, highstrength parts.

The resulting materials of high strength and reliability add to demanding applications in the aerospace industries, while the high-purity products contribute to new developments in electronics and offshore and energy applications. Each and every technology has its pros and cons, partially overlapping each other in their techno-economic potentials. Therefore, the proper selection of technology is the most demanding task the plant builder has to solve in close dialog with the producer of the materials and the consumer. This particular challenge is the keystone of the business philosophy of ALD Vacuum Technologies, Hanau / Germany.