Microcracks often appear on the grain interface of pure tungsten metal, and the propagation of these microcracks is an important reason for the fracture of tungsten. Twinning is easy to form in the deformation process of W-rhenium alloy, which reduces the dislocation energy of stacking layer, reduces the grain boundary impedance of dislocation movement, and leads to the increase of dislocation mobility and the softening of tungsten solution. This phenomenon is called the rhenium effect.

Tungsten-rhenium alloy is a kind of tungsten alloy, which is composed of tungsten and rhenium element. The typical rhenium content in the alloy is 1%, 3%, 5%, 20%, 25% and 26%. Tungsten-rhenium alloy has a series of excellent properties, such as high melting point, high strength, high hardness, high plasticity, high recrystallization temperature, high resistivity, low vapor pressure, low electron escape work and low plastic brittleness transition temperature.

Because tungsten - rhenium alloy has these advantages, so that it has a wide range of applications in the field of high temperature structural materials, electronic technology, nuclear technology, aerospace technology and temperature measurement technology.

The traditional application mainly has the following three aspects:

1、Low rhenium alloy wire and high rhenium alloy wire matching thermocouple, temperature measurement range is wide (0 ~ 2500C), high thermoelectric potential value, fast response, corrosion resistance is good, so tungsten rhenium thermocouple wire is widely used in temperature measuring instruments. It is not only used in vacuum, reducing atmosphere and inert atmosphere, but also used in oxidizing atmosphere instead of platinum rhodium thermocouple temperature measurement to get practical application.

2. Used for manufacturing single crystal sapphire, used for binding.

3、A hot wire used as an electrical contact material for electron tubes, picture tubes and light bulbs.

Tungsten-rhenium alloy has good ductility at low temperature (i.e. good formability of the first winding wire), good ductility at low temperature annealing (i.e. good formability of the second winding wire), good ductility at high temperature (i.e. ductility after the second recrystallization) and good sagging resistance at high temperature. Therefore, it is very suitable for the preparation of high-end filament.

Many contact materials are commonly used in electrical switches, such as car horn contacts and ignition contacts, voltage regulator contacts, telephone contacts, various electrical switch contacts, etc. In the work, each pair of contacts mutual friction and EDM corrosion and high frequency contact characteristics, therefore, the production of contact materials should meet the following requirements: material contact resistance is small, arc voltammetry characteristics is small, corrosion rate is small.

Hunan Rheniumet Materials Co., LTD., long-term focus on rhenium and rhenium alloy materials research and development, in addition to the above conventional applications, but also developed higher end aerospace, semiconductor, friction stir welding and other industries applications.

Aerospace high temperature structural materials

Tungsten - rhenium alloys used in space vehicles are: heat shield, rocket nozzle peripheral parts, cone parts, engine or engine parts paint. Tungsten-rhenium alloy containers and crucible materials for uranium extraction when UO2 is heated to 2000 ° C without reaction. The heating body and heat shield of high temperature furnace, crucible for evaporation of high purity metal, tungsten - rhenium alloy for spring, screw, nut, support rod and connecting rod in high temperature field, with good plasticity.

2、semiconductor MOCVD equipment parts

MOCVD equipment heating parts need to rapidly heating and cooling, the use of temperature up to 2000℃, the use of tungsten rhenium alloy can prolong the service life, tungsten rhenium alloy wire because of good elongation can also be used as a heating wire bracket.

3、 friction welding tungsten rhenium stirring head

Because of the high hardness, high strength, good wear resistance and corrosion resistance, tungsten - rhenium alloy can be used to make friction stir welding stirring head. In addition, the performance can also be used in the printer printing needle, nib, mapping instrument center of gravity hammer and wear-resistant parts.