Titanium is hot, but can it stand the heat. [For jet turbines and hypersonic aircraft]

TL;DRAbstract

Titanium aluminides, a new class of intermetallics with ceramic-like properties, that could change the shape of future jet turbines and hypersonic aircraft, are described. These intermetallics are alloyed from two lightweight metals, as opposed to superalloys, the current compressor leaders, which are primarily nickel, cobalt, or iron. Thus, aluminides show immediate promise of much lower mass than superalloys. Metallurgists can alloy and thermochemically process Ti3Al, the most fully developed of the aluminides, to achieve 3-5 percent room-temperature ductility. Consideration is given to other titanium alloys that show promise for application in an engine or on the skin of a hypersonic aircraft.

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