Application and Prospect of High-density Tungsten Alloy in Military Industry
Release time:
2025-01-06
1 Performance of High-density Tungsten Alloy
Tungsten has many excellent properties such as high melting point and high density, but its application is often limited by its brittleness. In order to change the brittleness of tungsten, a new tungsten alloy was successfully developed in 1938 internationally and in 1964 in China. This alloy is based on tungsten (tungsten content is 82%~98%), with nickel, copper or nickel, iron and a small amount of cobalt, manganese and other metal elements added. It has been widely used because it overcomes the brittleness of tungsten and maintains the excellent properties of tungsten such as high melting point, high density, and low expansion coefficient. It has now developed into multiple series of products such as W-Ni-Cu, W-Ni-e, and W-Ni-Co, but the two major series of products W-Ni-Cu and W-Ni-Fe are still widely used.
Dozens of research institutes and factories in China are engaged in the research and production of tungsten-based high-density alloys. The main characteristics of this alloy are:
1.1 High density
The density of high-density tungsten alloys is generally 16.0~18.8g/cm°, which is more than twice the density of steel. It is called "high-density tungsten alloy" or "heavy alloy".
1.2 High strength
The tensile strength of sintered high-density tungsten alloys is generally 580~950MPa. If certain trace elements are added, some properties can be further improved; if processed and deformed, its strength can reach more than 1,300MPa. 1.3 Good plasticity For the 93W-Ni-Fe series, the elongation of high-density tungsten alloys is more than 20%, and the impact toughness can reach about 1.5 (MJ/m); while the plasticity of the W-Ni-Cu series is lower than that of the W-Ni-Fe series.
1.4 Good radiation absorption ability
High-density tungsten alloy has a radiation absorption ability 30%~40% higher than lead, and has good rigidity and is difficult to deform during use.
1.5 Good corrosion resistance and high-temperature oxidation resistance
High-density tungsten alloy has good corrosion resistance to acid, the alloy has no obvious oxidation below 500℃, and can still maintain good strength and hardness at 800℃ or higher temperatures
1.6 Good machining performance
High-density tungsten alloy can be machined by turning, milling, grinding, planing, drilling, tapping, etc., and can tap M2 threads.
1.7 Good electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity and low thermal expansion coefficient
The thermal conductivity of high-density tungsten alloy is five times that of mold steel, and the thermal expansion coefficient is only 1/2~1/3 of iron or steel, and it has electrical properties such as electrical corrosion resistance and high voltage resistance.
1.8 Good weldability and surface electroplating properties
For high-density tungsten alloys, copper solder and silver solder can be used for brazing, and the alloy surface can also be electroplated, such as chrome plating, nickel plating, gold plating, etc., to firmly bond with the substrate.
2 Application of high-density tungsten alloys in military industry
Due to a series of characteristics, high-density tungsten alloys have been widely used in aviation, aerospace, weapons, ships and other military industries as important parts, and are also widely used in machinery, electrical appliances, instruments, metallurgy and other industrial sectors.
2.1 Application of high-density tungsten alloys in aerospace and aviation industries
The application of high-density tungsten alloys in aerospace and aviation industries began in the 1940s abroad and in the 1960s in China. The application of high-density tungsten alloys in gyroscopes has led to rapid progress in navigation technology. The accuracy and stability of the gyroscope are proportional to the rotating mass. In the past, copper or steel was used as the outer rotor of the gyroscope, and its accuracy and stability were both low. In the Second World War, the United States used 90W-6Ni-4Cu instead of copper (or steel) as the outer rotor, and its angular momentum increased by more than 70%, and the accuracy and stability of the instrument were significantly improved. The navigation gyroscope is the heart of the navigation and control systems of various satellites, rockets, missiles, aircraft, submarines, torpedoes, etc. Although various advanced navigation technologies have emerged internationally, the gyroscope is still the most widely used navigation instrument in the world.
High-density tungsten alloy can also be used as balance blocks, shock absorbers, K-machines and helicopter lift controls and wind vane counterweights for gyroscopes, etc. It is used for autopilot and direction bracket balance weights, aircraft engine balance hammers, and ballast balance weights. Four grades and five specifications of high-density tungsten alloys are used on the "Spey" engine, mainly used as bracket counterweights, rocker speed controller counterweights, fuel regulator counterweights, etc.
In some satellites, in order to overcome the shaking of satellites, satellite attitude instruments often use high-density tungsten alloys to play a role in nutation damping, so that the residual nutation angle of satellite nutation damping is reduced to less than 0.1°, reaching the international advanced level.
2.2 Application of high-density tungsten alloys in the weapons industry
In the weapons industry, high-density tungsten alloys are often used as lethal fragments that invade the human body, as core materials for large-caliber kinetic energy armor-piercing projectiles, cores for machine gun armor-piercing projectiles, warhead materials for guns and aircraft artillery shells, cores for rod-type kinetic energy armor-piercing projectiles, and lethal fragments in tactical missiles. With the development of the military industry, the progress of tank design, and the emergence of new armor composite shells, it is necessary to develop armor-piercing projectiles with high armor-piercing power. At home and abroad, gratifying progress has been made in the research of small-diameter and large-aspect-ratio projectile structures. At the same time, the caliber and chamber pressure of artillery are constantly increasing, requiring high-density tungsten alloys to have not only high density and strength, but also high toughness to ensure that rod-type kinetic energy armor-piercing projectiles have higher launch intensity and armor-piercing power. However, as the tensile strength of tungsten alloy materials increases, the elongation and impact toughness decrease. This contradiction has been well solved by domestic and foreign experts. The combination of high-density tungsten alloy strength and toughness meets the increasingly stringent requirements for projectile materials. Among various submunitions and missiles, some contain hundreds of kilograms of tungsten alloy projectile materials, which have strong attack capabilities and large killing areas. In addition, tungsten-based alloys are used as gyroscope outer rotor bodies, counterweights and other component materials in torpedoes, ships, tanks, armored vehicles and other weapons. The weapons industry is currently the largest consumer of tungsten alloys in the world.
2.3 Application of high-density tungsten alloys in the nuclear industry
The ability of metal materials to absorb x- and r-rays is directly proportional to their density. In the past, people widely used lead as shielding material because the specific gravity of lead is 11.3g/cm3, while tungsten alloy is above 17g/cm3. Therefore, it has a better absorption capacity for x-rays and r-rays than lead. In addition, lead is soft and easy to cut with a knife, while tungsten alloy has a higher hardness and its shielding effect on radiation is more than 1.5 times that of lead. It is an ideal shielding material for nuclear fuel storage and radiation protection. Since W-Ni-Fe and W-Ta alloys have high melting points, good impact toughness, high plasticity and low yield strength, they can be used to manufacture a thin-walled large chain sleeve shell as a functional composite gold material for atomic energy explosions to ensure the normal operation of the instrument.
3 Prospects
High-density tungsten alloy has a series of excellent properties and has become a key material or important spare parts in some cutting-edge scientific and technological fields and the defense industry. It has also been promoted and applied in the civilian industry. In order to further promote the development of tungsten alloys, the following aspects should be strengthened:
3.1 Open up the market and expand the application field
At present, high-density tungsten alloys are mainly used in the military industry. Although the civilian industry has also been rapidly promoted and applied, the quantity is still small after all. my country is a country with abundant tungsten resources, but the output is far behind that of the United States. The United States demanded more than 1,000 tons in the 1970s, while my country currently only has 200 to 300 tons. It has been widely used in foreign countries in industrial sectors such as machinery manufacturing, instrumentation industry, medical equipment, electrothermal processing, and mold manufacturing, and has also been widely used in sports equipment, such as javelin heads, heavy arrow arrows, and golf clubs. The high-density tungsten alloy plays an important role in improving the level of sports competition. The ballast of the naval model ship's cabin plays a key role in maintaining the stability of the aircraft model. It can be seen from this that its application market potential is great and needs to be developed.
3.2 Expand varieties and develop deep processing
At present, the two major series of products, W-Ni-Fe and W-Ni-Cu, are widely used at home and abroad. There has been some research on other series of products in China, but the varieties and specifications are not complete. At the same time, since a large number of tungsten alloy products are supplied in the form of blanks, the amount of machining increases. For example, the machining amount of rod-type kinetic energy armor-piercing projectile cores reaches more than 40%, resulting in great waste. Therefore, it is of great significance to improve the precision of blanks, increase material utilization and reduce costs. In the future, products should be standardized, serialized and standardized. At the same time, for the convenience of users, products can also be assembled into complete parts through processing and welding, which is conducive to market development.
3.3 Conduct research on new processes and technologies
With the development of high technology, certain special properties and special shapes are required for high-density tungsten alloys. To meet the needs of these high-tech developments, in addition to further research on material properties, new processes and new technologies must be developed. For example, for slender tubes and rods, extrusion process research must be carried out; for those small products with complex shapes, new injection molding processes must be studied. Therefore, in the production of high-density tungsten alloys, in addition to conventional production methods, cold and hot isostatic pressing, semi-continuous extrusion, rolling, rotary forging, injection molding and other processes should be vigorously adopted, and coating, electroplating, vapor deposition and other methods should be used to produce low-cost, wear-resistant, rust-proof and other products to meet the domestic market and create conditions for entering the international market.
At present, the number of tungsten alloy products entering the international market is limited. For example, in 1994, tungsten products were exported in 919 tons, mainly tungsten powder, tungsten metal products, tungsten rods, etc., of which tungsten powder was 743 tons. If tungsten alloy products can be exported, it will play an important role in changing the export structure of tungsten products and increasing foreign exchange income.
After decades of efforts, in the process of developing tungsten resources, my country has a group of scientific and technological talents engaged in tungsten alloy research and production, and has established a number of production and scientific research bases. We believe that in the near future, my country's tungsten industry and tungsten alloy technology level will have a great development.
Paper citation information
Hunan Nonferrous Metals Vol. 13 No. 3 May 1997
The spherical W-Ni-Fe Powder spheroidized by Stardust Technology using radio frequency plasma technology has the following characteristics:
1) High sphericity, better fluidity and formability. This makes the alloy easier to process and form, ensuring that the product is not prone to defects such as pores and cracks during the manufacturing process.
2) Higher density and more uniform organizational structure. , thereby improving the compressive strength, tensile strength and wear resistance of the material.
3) Uniform particle size distribution. Improves the mechanical properties of the alloy, and can also enhance its corrosion resistance and radiation resistance in extreme environments.
4) It can further enhance its application potential in aerospace, nuclear energy, electronic equipment, automobiles and other industries.
For more details, please contact Vicky+0086-13318326185(Whatsapp)
Stardust Technology (Guangdong) Co., Ltd.
101, Building 1, Liandong Youzhi Zone, Senshuji Road, Nansha Community, Danzao Town, Nanhai District, Foshan City,Guangdong Pro.,China
Tel：13318326187；13378626726；13318326185;
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