There are a number of ways to join two metals together. Most of these involve some form of welding or brazing, with many variations in these techniques. One of the welding categories is solid-state welding, and one of the eight solid-state welding techniques – explosion welding (EXW) – meets a unique metal-joining need.    
 

A tunneling project to extend a subway line created interest in the large Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) being used. Just how does this 23-foot-diameter machine with a length of 200 feet and a weight of 1.2 million pounds cut 35 feet of tunnel every day, and how does thermal processing play a role?

The study of heat treatment and the metallurgy of metals is perhaps the oldest science known to man-kind. If one thinks about that statement, you realize that there was a time that humans used only stone for weapons and digging. Then came the age that carried man into the world of metals.

December always seems (to me) to be a great month to reflect on the beauty around us and that of the season. Many beautiful things are thermally processed, so let’s slow down and take a look.

L&L Special Furnace Co. Inc. shipped a floor-standing, high-temperature box furnace to a global supplier of piezo ceramics used in the military, aerospace and medical industries. The furnace, which has an effective work zone measuring 18 inches wide x 18 inches high x 36 inches deep, has a double-pivot horizontal door. It is used for processing glass products to 2500°F (1371°C). This process causes lead to outgas. As a result, the furnace interior is constructed of high-alumina refractory with less silica than normal linings, which helps delay the corrosive reaction between the silica present in the refractory and the lead outgassing at elevated temperatures.

As we age, we sometimes outlive our joints. The aging of the largest segment of our population (the Boomers) will surely increase the number of joint failures. When joints fail, the solution is often to replace the problem area with an artificial joint. Before that can happen, however, a number of thermal processes must take place because most of these replacement joints are made from a cast metallic alloy.

The story of the Titanic is a tragic tale of life lost. We have long been intrigued with the reasons why this catastrophe occurred. Design certainly played a role, but other similarly designed ships had useful service lives. At least one “cause” can be attributed to the metal used to make the hull of the ship. The melting and forming of this material certainly contributed.

This article looks at ways our means of transportation – how we get from here to there – are heat treated. We start with aerospace and then consider vehicular transportation followed by manual propulsion.

What could be more common than the household refrigerator? It is the most-used appliance in America with more than 99.5% of homes having one. How did this come about, and what does heat treatment have to do with cooling things?

Much of U.S. history involves high-temperature thermal processing in one form or another – melting, forging or heat treating.