Copper aluminide

Reinforcement for metal-matrix composites with such metals as titanium, titanium aluminide, aluminum, magnesium, and copper. Applications are found mostly in advanced aerospace programs and include fan blades, drive shafts, and other components. 

The present monograph was first written as a chapter for Volume 8 of the series Materials Sdence and Technology A Comprehensive Treatment , edited by Robert W. Cahn, Peter Haasen, and Edward J. Kramer (Volume Editor Dr. Karl Heinz Matucha). Its aim is to give an overview of intermetallics, which is both detailed and comprehensive and which includes the fundamentals as well as applications. The result is an extended, critical review of the whole field of intermetallics with an emphasis on those intermetallic phases which have already been applied as functional or structural materials or which are currently the subject of materials developments. A historical introduction and a discussion of the relationship between atomic bonding, crystal structure, phase stability and properties is followed by a discussion of the major classes of intermetallics. The titanium aluminides, nickel aluminides, iron aluminides, copper phases, A15 phases. Laves phases, beryllides, rare earth phases, and siliddes are reviewed. In particular, the crystal structures, phase diagrams, and physical properties as well as the mechanical and corrosion behavior are treated. The state of developments as well as prospects and problems are discussed in view of present and future applications. The publisher has decided to publish the review as a separate monograph in order to make it accessible to a wider audience. 

The aluminides with nickel and copper as transition-metal component show a very interesting behavior. At normal pressure conditions, YbNiAl (Schank et al. 1995, Rossi et al. 1983a,b) and YbCuAl (Mattens et al. 1982) crystallize with the hexagonal ZrNiAl type (Krypyakevich et al. 1967, Jacob et al. 1987, Zumdick et al. 1999) (fig. 3), a ternary ordered version of the Fe2P structure (Rundqvist and Jellinek 1959) (space group P62m). 

Metal-Ceramic Composites. Metals such as aluminum, titanium, copper and the intermetallic titanium aluminide, which are reinforced with silicon-carbide fibers or whiskers show an appreciable increase in mechanical properties particularly at elevated temperatures. These composites are being considered for advanced aerospace structures.1 1... 

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