Controlled Expansion Alloys Selection
Selecting Controlled Expansion Alloys Controlled Expansion Alloys Alloys with controlled expansion characteristics are used for a broad variety of applications where thermal change of the size of the metal must be considered in a component or parts design. Generally, these controlled expansion alloys expand when heated and contract when cooled and their rate of expansion and contraction is matched with another material. The alloy composition and crystal structure together help to determine the thermal expansion behavior of each controlled expansion alloy. The rate of expansion of the alloy is expressed as an average or mean coefficient of thermal expansion of the alloy. The thermal expansion behaviour of some controlled expansion alloys is not linear. Hence, it is important to specify the upper and lower limits of the temperature when describing the thermal expansion coefficient that is needed in controlled expansion material . In general there are three types of controlled e...