CoukieNovelis’ Multi alloy aluminium ingot technology
June 14th 2006 12:36
A real breakthrough is happening in the Aluminium industry. The company Novelis a spin off of the Canadian multinational Alcan, has developed a technology that allows the production of multi alloy rolling ingots. The new ingot will be made of one aluminium alloy core and successive layers of the preferred aluminium alloys. The aluminium rolled products historically have been produced from a single alloy due to limitations of a low-tech, high-cost, manual ingot-cladding process. In the old scenario customers had to deal with trade offs on their products because some of the characteristics of one alloy weren’t present in another, but now customers will enjoy the opportunity to combine such characteristics, hence premium combinations of structural strength and surface finishing will be at the order of the day.
According to Novelis some of the applications of the new technology will be:
•Automotive sheet with both strength and improved formability to enable new design options.
•Architectural applications with a superior surface finish and enhanced strength.
•Household appliances with a variety of attractive finishes and better dent resistance.
•Underground pipes with maximum corrosion resistance combined with high strength.
•Rail cars with high load-carrying capacity and better wear resistance.
•Electronics cases that are highly durable and provide a high-tech appearance.
•Boat hulls with enhanced corrosion resistance without compromising strength.
Thomas W. Eagar, Sc.D., professor of materials engineering and engineering systems at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology said: "It is the most significant breakthrough in aluminum solidification since the introduction of direct chill casting in the 1930s."
Novelis shares worth $22.49 Cdn in Tuesday on the Toronto Stock Exchange.
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