Title of Invention	A GAS ATOMISATION METHOD FOR PRODUCING A FECRA1 MATERIAL
Abstract	A method of producing an FeCrAl material by gas atomisation, wherein in addition to containing iron (Fe), chromium (Cr) and aluminium (Al) the material also contains minor fractions of one or more of the materials molybdenum (Mo), hafnium (Hf), zirconium (Zr), yttrium (Y), nitrogen (N), carbon (C) and oxygen (O). The invention is characterised by causing the smelt to be atomised to contain 0.05-0.50 percent by weight tantalum (Ta) and, at the same time, less than 0.10 percent by weight titanium (Ti). According to one highly preferred embodiment, nitrogen gas (N¿2?) is used as an atomising gas to which a given amount of oxygen gas (O¿2?) is added, said amount of oxygen gas being such as to cause the atomised powder to contain 0.02-0.10 percent by weight oxygen (0) at the same time as the nitrogen content of the powder is 0.01-0.06 percent by weight. The invention also relates to a high temperature material

Title of Invention

A GAS ATOMISATION METHOD FOR PRODUCING A FECRA1 MATERIAL

Abstract

A method of producing an FeCrAl material by gas atomisation, wherein in addition to containing iron (Fe), chromium (Cr) and aluminium (Al) the material also contains minor fractions of one or more of the materials molybdenum (Mo), hafnium (Hf), zirconium (Zr), yttrium (Y), nitrogen (N), carbon (C) and oxygen (O). The invention is characterised by causing the smelt to be atomised to contain 0.05-0.50 percent by weight tantalum (Ta) and, at the same time, less than 0.10 percent by weight titanium (Ti). According to one highly preferred embodiment, nitrogen gas (N¿2?) is used as an atomising gas to which a given amount of oxygen gas (O¿2?) is added, said amount of oxygen gas being such as to cause the atomised powder to contain 0.02-0.10 percent by weight oxygen (0) at the same time as the nitrogen content of the powder is 0.01-0.06 percent by weight. The invention also relates to a high temperature material

Full Text	FORM 2 THE PATENTS ACT 1970 [39 OF 1970] & THE PATENTS (AMENDMENT) RULES, 2006 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION [See Section 10; rule 13] "A GAS ATOMISATION METHOD FOR PRODUCING A FeCrAl MATERIAL" SANDVIK INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AB, a corporation duly organized and existing under the laws of Sweden of Spangvagen 10, 811 81 Sandviken, Sweden, The following specification particularly describes the invention and the manner in which it is to be performed: ORIGINAL IN/PCT/2002/721 GRANTED 15-5-2008 The present invention relates to a method of producing an FeCrAl material, and also to such material Conventional iron based alloys containing typically Fe and 12-25% Cr and 3-7% A1,so-called FeCrAl-alloys, have been found highly useful in various high temperature applications, due to their good oxidation resistance. Thus, such materials have been used in the production of electrical resistance elements and as carrier materials in motor vehicle catalysts. As a result of its aluminium content, the alloy is able to form at high temperatures and in the majority of atmospheres an impervious and adhesive surface oxide consisting substantially of AI2O3, This oxide protects the. metal against further oxidation and also against many other forms of corrosion, such as carburization, sulphuration, etc.. A pure FeCrAl alloy is characterised by a relatively low mechanical strength at elevated temperatures. Such alloys are relatively weak at high temperatures and tend to become brittle at low temperatures subsequent to having been subjected to -elevated temperatures for a relatively long period of time, due to grain growth. One way of improving the high :emperature strength of such alloys is to include non-metallic inclusions in the alloy and herewith obtain a precipitation hardening effect 3ne known way of adding said inclusions is by a so-called mechanical alloying process in vhich the components are mixed in solid phase. In this regard, a mixture of fine oxide lowder, conventionally Y2O3, and metal powder having an FeCrAl composition is ground n high energy mills over a long period of time until an homogenous structure is obtained. Grinding results in a powder that can later be consolidated, for instance by hot extrusion or ot isostatic pressing to form a completely tight product. Although Y2O3 ,can be considered to be a highly stable oxide from a thermodynarnical aspect, small paiticles of yttrium can be transformed or dissolved in a metal matrix under different circumstances. It is known that in a mechanical alloy process yttrium particles react with aluminium and oxygen, therewith, forming different kinds of Y-Al-oxides. The composition of these mixed oxide inclusions will change. and their stability lowered during long-term use of the material, due to changes in the surrounding matrix. It has also been reported that an addition of a strongly oxide-forming element in the form of titanium to a mechanically alloyed material that contains Y203 and 12% Cr can cause the separation of complex (Y+Ti) oxides, resulting in a material that has greater mechanical strength than a material that contains no titanium., The strength ax elevated temperatures. can be further improved, by adding molybdenum. Thus .a- material that has good streagth properties.can ba obtained by means of a mechanical alloying process. Mechanical alloying, however, is encumbered with several drawbacks. Mechanical alloying is carried out batch-wise in high energy mills, in which the components are mixed to obtain an homogenous mixture. The batches are relatively limited in size, and the grinding process requires a relatively long period of time to complete. The grinding process is also energy demanding. The decisive drawback with mechanical alloying resides in the high product costs entailed. A process in which an FeCrAl material alloyed with fine particles could be produced without needing to apply high energy grinding would be highly beneficial from the aspect of cost. It would be to advantage if the material could be produced by gas atomisation, i.e. the production of a fine powder that is later compressed. This process is less expensive than when the powder is produced by grinding. Very small carbides and nitrides are precipitated in conjunction with the rapid solidification process, such carbides and nitrides being desirable. However, the titanium constitutes a serious problem when atomising an FeCrAl material. The problem is that small particles of mainly TIN and TiC are formed in the smelt prior to atomisation. These particles tend to fasten on the refractory material. Since the smelt passes through a relatively fine ceramic nozzle prior to atomisation, these particles will fasten to the nozzle and gradually accumulate. This causes clogging of the nozzle, therewith making it necessary to disrupt the atomisarion process. Such stoppages in production are expensive and troublesome. Consequently, FeGrAl materials that contain tittanium are not produced by atomisation in practice The present invention solves this problem and relates to a method in which an FeCrAl material can be produced by means of atomisation. The present invention thus relates to a method of producing an FeCrAl material by gas atomisation, wherein said material in addition to iron (Ft), chromium (Cr) and aluminium (Al) also contains minor fractions of one or more of the materials molybdenum (Mo), hafhinm (Hi), zirconium (Zr), yttrium (Y), nitrogen (N), carbon (C) and oxygen (O), and wherein the method is characterised by causing the smelt to be atomised to contain 0.05-0.50 percent by weight tantalum (Ta) and, at the same time, less than 0.10 percent by weight titanium (Ti). The invention also relates to a material of the kind defined in Claim 6 and having the essential features set forth in said Claim. The present invention relates to a method of producing an FeCrAl material by gas atomisation. In addition to iron (Fe), chromium (Cr) and aluminium (Al), the FeCrAl material also includes minor fractions of one or more of the materials molybdenum (Mo), hafnium (Hf), zirconium (Zr), yttrium (Y), nitrogen (N), carbon (C) and oxygen (O). According to the present invention, the smelt to be atomised is caused to contain 0.05-0.50 percent by weight tantalum (Ta) and also less than 0.10 percent by weight titanium (Ti). It has been found that tantalum imparts strength properties that are comparable with those obtained when using titanium at the same time as TiC and TiN are not formed in quantities that cause clogging of the no2zle. This applies even when the smelt contains 0.10 percent by weight titanium. Thus, it is possible to produce the material in question by gas atomisation, by using tantalum instead of at least a part of the titanium quantity. It is usual, and also possible, to use argon (Ar) as the atomising gas. However, argon is adsorbed partly on accessible and available surfaces and partly in pores in the powder grains. In conjunction with subsequent heat consolidation and heat processing of the product, the argon will collect under high pressure in microdefects. These defects swell to form pores in later use at low pressure and high temperatura, thereby impairing the strength of the product Powder that is atomised by means of nitrogen gas does not behave in the same manner as argon, since nitrogen has greater solubility in the metal than argon and since nitrogen is able to form nitrides. When gas atomising with pure nitrogen gas, the aluminium will react with the gas and marked mtration of the surfaces of the powder grains can occur. This nitration makes it difficult to create bonds between the powder grains in conjunction with hot isostatic pressing (HPI), causing difficulties in the heat processing or the heat treatment of the resultant blank. In addition, individual powder grains may be so significantly nitrated as to cause the major part of the aluminium to bind as nitrides. Such particles are unable to form a protective oxide. Consequently, they can disturb the formation of oxide if they are present close to the surface of the end product It has been found that some oxidation of the powder surfaces is obtained when a controlled amount of gaseous oxygen is supplied to the nitrogen gas, while considerably reducing nitration at the same time. The risk of oxide disturbances is also greatly reduced- Consequently; in accordance with one highly preferred embodiment, nitrogen gas (N2) is used as an atomising gas to which a given quantity of oxygen gas (O2) is added, said amount of oxygen, gas being such as to cause the atomised powder to contain: 0,02-0.10 percent by weight oxygen (O) at the same time as the nitrogen content of the powder is 0.01-0.06 percent by weight According to one preferred embodiment, the smelt is caused to have a composition in which the powder obtained has the following composition in percent by weight, subsequent to atomisation: Fe balance Cr 15-25 percent by weight AX 3-7 Mo 0-5 Y 0.05-0.60 Zr 0.01-0.30 Hf 0.05-0.50 1a 0.03-0.30 Ti 0-0.10 C 0.01-0.05 N 0.01-0.06 O 0.02-0.10 . Si 0.10-0.70 Ma 0.05-0.50 P 0-0.08 S 0-0.005 , According to one particularly preferred embodiment, the smelt is caused to have a composition such, that subsequent to atonnsation the resultant powder will have roughly the following composition in percent by weight: Fe balance Cr 21 percent by weight Al 4.7 Mo 3 Y 0.2 Zr 0.1 Hf 0.2 Ta 0.2 Ti N 0.04 O 0.06 Si 0.4 Mn 0.15 P . S Subsequent to heat treatment, the creep strength or creep resistance of the material is influenced to a great extent by the presence of oxides of yttrium and tantalum and by carbides of hafnium and zirconium. According to one preferred embodiment, the value of the formula ((3xY + Ta)xO) + ((2xZr + Hf)x(N + C)), where elements in the formula shall be replaced by the content in weight percent of respective elements in the smelt, is greater than 0.04 but-smaller than 0.35. Although the invention has been described above with reference to a number of exemplifying embodiments, it will be understood that the composition of the material can be modified to some extent while still obtaining a satisfactory material The present invention is therefore not restricted to said embodiments, since variations can be made within the scope of the accompanying Claims. WE CLAIM: 1. A gas atomisation method for producing a FeCrAI material, said material also containing in addition to iron (Fe), chromium (Cr) and aluminium (Al) minor fractions of one or more of the materials molybdenum (Mo), hafnium (Hf), zirconium (Zr), ytterium (Y), nitrogen (N), carbon (C) and oxygen, the method being characterized in that the smelt to be atomised is caused to contain 0,05 -0,50 percent by weight tantalum (Ta) and, at the same time less than 0,10 percent by weight titanium (Ti). 2. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein by using nitrogen gas (N2) as an atomising gas and by adding a given amount of oxygen gas (O2) to the atomising gas, wherein said amount of oxygen gas is caused to be such that the atomised powder will contain 0.02-0.10 percent by weight oxygen (O) at the same time as the nib:ogen content of the powder is 0.01-0.06 percent by weight. 3. A method as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein by causing the smelt to have a composition such that the powder obtained after atomisation will have the following composition in percent by weight Fe balance Cr 15-25 percent by weight Al 3-7 Mo 0-5 Y 0.05-0.60 Zr 0.01-0.30 Hf 0.05-0.50 Ta 0.05-0.50 Ti 0-0.10 C 0.01-0.05 N 0.01-0.06 O 0.02-0.10 Si 0.10-0.70 Mn 0.05-0.50 P 0-0.8 S 0-0.005 4. A method as claimed in claim 3, wherein by causing the smelt to have a composition such that the powder obtained after atomisation has the following approximate composition in perc by weight Fe balance Cr 21 percent by weight Al 4.7 Mo 3 Y 0.2 Zr 0.1 Hf 0.2 Ta 0.2 Ti C 0.03 N 0.04 O 0.06 Si 0.4 Mn 0.15 P S 5. A method as claimed in claims 1, 2, 3 or 4, wherein the value of the formula ((3xY + Ta)xO) + ((2xZr + Hf)x(N + C)) in which the elements are given in percent by weight in the smelt, shall exceed 0.04 but be less than 0.35. 6 Dated this June 3, 2002. (RICHA PANDEY) OF REMFRY AND SAGAR ATTORNEY FOR THE APPLICANTS

Full Text

FORM 2
THE PATENTS ACT 1970
[39 OF 1970]
&
THE PATENTS (AMENDMENT) RULES, 2006
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION
[See Section 10; rule 13]
"A GAS ATOMISATION METHOD FOR PRODUCING A FeCrAl MATERIAL"
SANDVIK INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AB, a corporation duly organized and existing under the laws of Sweden of Spangvagen 10, 811 81 Sandviken, Sweden,
The following specification particularly describes the invention and the manner in which it is to be performed:

ORIGINAL
IN/PCT/2002/721

GRANTED
15-5-2008

The present invention relates to a method of producing an FeCrAl material, and also to such material
Conventional iron based alloys containing typically Fe and 12-25% Cr and 3-7% A1,so-called FeCrAl-alloys, have been found highly useful in various high temperature applications, due to their good oxidation resistance. Thus, such materials have been used in the production of electrical resistance elements and as carrier materials in motor vehicle catalysts. As a result of its aluminium content, the alloy is able to form at high temperatures and in the majority of atmospheres an impervious and adhesive surface oxide consisting substantially of AI2O3, This oxide protects the. metal against further oxidation and also against many other forms of corrosion, such as carburization, sulphuration, etc..
A pure FeCrAl alloy is characterised by a relatively low mechanical strength at elevated temperatures. Such alloys are relatively weak at high temperatures and tend to become brittle at low temperatures subsequent to having been subjected to -elevated temperatures for a relatively long period of time, due to grain growth. One way of improving the high :emperature strength of such alloys is to include non-metallic inclusions in the alloy and herewith obtain a precipitation hardening effect
3ne known way of adding said inclusions is by a so-called mechanical alloying process in vhich the components are mixed in solid phase. In this regard, a mixture of fine oxide lowder, conventionally Y2O3, and metal powder having an FeCrAl composition is ground n high energy mills over a long period of time until an homogenous structure is obtained.
Grinding results in a powder that can later be consolidated, for instance by hot extrusion or ot isostatic pressing to form a completely tight product.

Although Y2O3 ,can be considered to be a highly stable oxide from a thermodynarnical aspect, small paiticles of yttrium can be transformed or dissolved in a metal matrix under different circumstances.
It is known that in a mechanical alloy process yttrium particles react with aluminium and oxygen, therewith, forming different kinds of Y-Al-oxides. The composition of these mixed oxide inclusions will change. and their stability lowered during long-term use of the material, due to changes in the surrounding matrix.
It has also been reported that an addition of a strongly oxide-forming element in the form of titanium to a mechanically alloyed material that contains Y203 and 12% Cr can cause the separation of complex (Y+Ti) oxides, resulting in a material that has greater mechanical strength than a material that contains no titanium., The strength ax elevated temperatures. can be further improved, by adding molybdenum.
Thus .a- material that has good streagth properties.can ba obtained by means of a mechanical alloying process.
Mechanical alloying, however, is encumbered with several drawbacks. Mechanical alloying is carried out batch-wise in high energy mills, in which the components are mixed to obtain an homogenous mixture. The batches are relatively limited in size, and the grinding process requires a relatively long period of time to complete. The grinding process is also energy demanding. The decisive drawback with mechanical alloying resides in the high product costs entailed.
A process in which an FeCrAl material alloyed with fine particles could be produced without needing to apply high energy grinding would be highly beneficial from the aspect of cost.

It would be to advantage if the material could be produced by gas atomisation, i.e. the production of a fine powder that is later compressed. This process is less expensive than when the powder is produced by grinding. Very small carbides and nitrides are precipitated in conjunction with the rapid solidification process, such carbides and nitrides being desirable.
However, the titanium constitutes a serious problem when atomising an FeCrAl material. The problem is that small particles of mainly TIN and TiC are formed in the smelt prior to atomisation. These particles tend to fasten on the refractory material. Since the smelt passes through a relatively fine ceramic nozzle prior to atomisation, these particles will fasten to the nozzle and gradually accumulate. This causes clogging of the nozzle, therewith making it necessary to disrupt the atomisarion process. Such stoppages in production are expensive and troublesome. Consequently, FeGrAl materials that contain tittanium are not produced by atomisation in practice
The present invention solves this problem and relates to a method in which an FeCrAl material can be produced by means of atomisation.

The present invention thus relates to a method of producing an FeCrAl material by gas atomisation, wherein said material in addition to iron (Ft), chromium (Cr) and aluminium (Al) also contains minor fractions of one or more of the materials molybdenum (Mo), hafhinm (Hi), zirconium (Zr), yttrium (Y), nitrogen (N), carbon (C) and oxygen (O), and wherein the method is characterised by causing the smelt to be atomised to contain 0.05-0.50 percent by weight tantalum (Ta) and, at the same time, less than 0.10 percent by weight titanium (Ti).
The invention also relates to a material of the kind defined in Claim 6 and having the essential features set forth in said Claim.

The present invention relates to a method of producing an FeCrAl material by gas atomisation. In addition to iron (Fe), chromium (Cr) and aluminium (Al), the FeCrAl material also includes minor fractions of one or more of the materials molybdenum (Mo), hafnium (Hf), zirconium (Zr), yttrium (Y), nitrogen (N), carbon (C) and oxygen (O).
According to the present invention, the smelt to be atomised is caused to contain 0.05-0.50 percent by weight tantalum (Ta) and also less than 0.10 percent by weight titanium (Ti).
It has been found that tantalum imparts strength properties that are comparable with those obtained when using titanium at the same time as TiC and TiN are not formed in quantities that cause clogging of the no2zle. This applies even when the smelt contains 0.10 percent by weight titanium.
Thus, it is possible to produce the material in question by gas atomisation, by using tantalum instead of at least a part of the titanium quantity.
It is usual, and also possible, to use argon (Ar) as the atomising gas. However, argon is adsorbed partly on accessible and available surfaces and partly in pores in the powder grains. In conjunction with subsequent heat consolidation and heat processing of the product, the argon will collect under high pressure in microdefects. These defects swell to form pores in later use at low pressure and high temperatura, thereby impairing the strength of the product
Powder that is atomised by means of nitrogen gas does not behave in the same manner as argon, since nitrogen has greater solubility in the metal than argon and since nitrogen is able to form nitrides. When gas atomising with pure nitrogen gas, the aluminium will react with the gas and marked mtration of the surfaces of the powder grains can occur. This nitration makes it difficult to create bonds between the powder grains in conjunction with

hot isostatic pressing (HPI), causing difficulties in the heat processing or the heat treatment of the resultant blank. In addition, individual powder grains may be so significantly nitrated as to cause the major part of the aluminium to bind as nitrides. Such particles are unable to form a protective oxide. Consequently, they can disturb the formation of oxide if they are present close to the surface of the end product
It has been found that some oxidation of the powder surfaces is obtained when a controlled amount of gaseous oxygen is supplied to the nitrogen gas, while considerably reducing nitration at the same time. The risk of oxide disturbances is also greatly reduced-
Consequently; in accordance with one highly preferred embodiment, nitrogen gas (N2) is used as an atomising gas to which a given quantity of oxygen gas (O2) is added, said amount of oxygen, gas being such as to cause the atomised powder to contain: 0,02-0.10 percent by weight oxygen (O) at the same time as the nitrogen content of the powder is 0.01-0.06 percent by weight
According to one preferred embodiment, the smelt is caused to have a composition in which the powder obtained has the following composition in percent by weight, subsequent to atomisation:
Fe balance
Cr 15-25 percent by weight
AX 3-7
Mo 0-5
Y 0.05-0.60
Zr 0.01-0.30
Hf 0.05-0.50

1a 0.03-0.30
Ti 0-0.10
C 0.01-0.05
N 0.01-0.06
O 0.02-0.10
. Si 0.10-0.70
Ma 0.05-0.50
P 0-0.08
S 0-0.005
, According to one particularly preferred embodiment, the smelt is caused to have a composition such, that subsequent to atonnsation the resultant powder will have roughly the following composition in percent by weight:
Fe balance
Cr 21 percent by weight
Al 4.7
Mo 3
Y 0.2
Zr 0.1
Hf 0.2
Ta 0.2
Ti
N 0.04
O 0.06
Si 0.4
Mn 0.15
P . S Subsequent to heat treatment, the creep strength or creep resistance of the material is influenced to a great extent by the presence of oxides of yttrium and tantalum and by carbides of hafnium and zirconium.
According to one preferred embodiment, the value of the formula ((3xY + Ta)xO) + ((2xZr + Hf)x(N + C)), where elements in the formula shall be replaced by the content in weight percent of respective elements in the smelt, is greater than 0.04 but-smaller than 0.35.
Although the invention has been described above with reference to a number of exemplifying embodiments, it will be understood that the composition of the material can be modified to some extent while still obtaining a satisfactory material
The present invention is therefore not restricted to said embodiments, since variations can be made within the scope of the accompanying Claims.

WE CLAIM:
1. A gas atomisation method for producing a FeCrAI material, said material also containing in addition to iron (Fe), chromium (Cr) and aluminium (Al) minor fractions of one or more of the materials molybdenum (Mo), hafnium (Hf), zirconium (Zr), ytterium (Y), nitrogen (N), carbon (C) and oxygen, the method being characterized in that the smelt to be atomised is caused to contain 0,05 -0,50 percent by weight tantalum (Ta) and, at the same time less than 0,10 percent by weight titanium (Ti).
2. A method as claimed in claim 1, wherein by using nitrogen gas (N2) as an atomising gas and by adding a given amount of oxygen gas (O2) to the atomising gas, wherein said amount of oxygen gas is caused to be such that the atomised powder will contain 0.02-0.10 percent by weight oxygen (O) at the same time as the nib:ogen content of the powder is 0.01-0.06 percent by weight.
3. A method as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein by causing the smelt to have a composition such that the powder obtained after atomisation will have the following composition in percent by weight
Fe balance
Cr 15-25 percent by weight
Al 3-7

Mo 0-5
Y 0.05-0.60
Zr 0.01-0.30
Hf 0.05-0.50
Ta 0.05-0.50
Ti 0-0.10
C 0.01-0.05
N 0.01-0.06
O 0.02-0.10
Si 0.10-0.70
Mn 0.05-0.50
P 0-0.8
S 0-0.005
4. A method as claimed in claim 3, wherein by causing the smelt
to have a composition such that the powder obtained after

atomisation has the following approximate composition in perc by weight
Fe balance
Cr 21 percent by weight
Al 4.7
Mo 3
Y 0.2
Zr 0.1
Hf 0.2
Ta 0.2
Ti C 0.03
N 0.04
O 0.06
Si 0.4

Mn 0.15
P S 5. A method as claimed in claims 1, 2, 3 or 4, wherein the value of the formula ((3xY + Ta)xO) + ((2xZr + Hf)x(N + C)) in which the elements are given in percent by weight in the smelt, shall exceed 0.04 but be less than 0.35. 6
Dated this June 3, 2002.
(RICHA PANDEY)
OF REMFRY AND SAGAR ATTORNEY FOR THE APPLICANTS

A GAS ATOMISATION METHOD FOR PRODUCING A FECRA1 MATERIAL

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