Inconel is a family of austenitic nickel-chromium-based superalloys. Inconel is predominantly of nickel-chrome, generally contains over 50% nickel.
Inconel alloys are oxidation-corrosion-resistant materials well suited for service in extreme environments subjected to pressure and heat.
Inconel alloys or superalloys are nickel-based alloys that exhibit traits such as high resistance to corrosion, oxidation, carburization, pitting, crevice, corrosion cracking, and high temperature strength. Often, Inconel is referred to as “Inco”
Inconel, when heated, forms a thick yet stable oxide layer that protects its outer surface from further attack. This makes it the ideal choice for extreme temperature and pressure applications, where steel and aluminum would succumb to thermal creep. Available in numerous grades, the Inconel alloys exhibit shifting characteristics with slight variations in their chemistry.
In its more basic form, typical applications would include the food industry and heat treatment components. When alloyed with other elements, however, further strengthening and stiffening permits its use in the more demanding areas of the marine, aerospace and chemical processing industries. Alloyed to its peak performance, Inconel then becomes the material of choice in the most critical environments of turbine blades, rocket engines and key nuclear industry components.
Characteristics of Inconel:
• Good resistance to acids, such as sulfuric, phosphoric, nitric, and hydrochloric
• Almost completely free from chloride induced stress corrosion cracking
• Excellent mechanical properties at both extremely low and extremely high temperatures
• Outstanding resistance to pitting, crevice corrosion and intercrystalline corrosion
• High resistance to oxidation at elevated temperatures
Applications of Inconel:
• Chemical and petrochemical processing
• Aerospace
• Automotive Industry
• Gas turbines, rocket motors/engines, and space craft
• Pollution control equipment
• Nuclear reactors