Superalloy resources: Supply and availability

Technical Report · Wed Apr 01 04:00:00 EST 1987

OSTI ID:6231715

Stephens, J R

Over the past several decades there have been shortages of strategic materials because of our near total import dependence on such metals as chromium, cobalt, and tantalum. In response to the continued vulnerability of U.S. superalloy producers to disruptions in resource supplies, NASA has undertaken a program to address alternatives to the super-alloys containing significant quantities of the strategic materials such as chromium, cobalt, niobium, and tantalum. The research program called Conservation of Strategic Aerospace Materials (COSAM) focuses on substitution, processing, and alternate materials to achieve its goals. In addition to NASA Lewis Research Center, universities and industry play an important role in the COSAM Program. This paper defines what is meant by strategic materials in the aerospace community, presents a strategic materials index, and reviews the resource supply and availability picture from the U.S. point of view. In addition, research results from the COSAM Program are highlighted and future directions for the use of low strategic material alloys or alternate materials are discussed.

• Research Organization: National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Cleveland, OH (USA). Lewis Research Center
• OSTI ID: 6231715
• Report Number(s): N-87-21077; NASA-TM-89866; E-3305; NAS-1.15:89866
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
360100* -- Metals & Alloys
AEROSPACE INDUSTRY
ALLOYS
CHROMIUM
COBALT
ELEMENTS
HEAT RESISTANT MATERIALS
HEAT RESISTING ALLOYS
INDUSTRY
MATERIALS
METALS
NIOBIUM
RESEARCH PROGRAMS
RESOURCES
TANTALUM
TRANSITION ELEMENTS