Ritchey Metals, a Canonsburg, Pa.-based manufacturer of zinc alloys, entered into a joint venture with Imperial Group to serve the nonferrous alloyed metals industry in the southern half of the United States. Chicago-based Imperial Group, which consists of 17 industrial entities, is a diversified metals group moving nearly 75 million pounds of metal per month. The joint venture will utilize Imperial Group’s plant in Scottsboro, Ala., which will add capabilities to service the market stretching all from the East Coast to the Southwest. Ritchey Metals operates two facilities in southwestern Pennsylvania, each with multiple industrial furnaces.

Retrogression heat treatment and re-aging (RRA) is used for retaining optimal strength in aluminum alloys while avoiding stress corrosion cracking (SCC). Last time, we learned about the SCC phenomenon and its effects on aluminum alloys.

QuesTek Innovations LLC and the German Aerospace Center, in a joint effort, will explore the full potential of QuesTek’s new printable aluminum (Al) alloy, which was developed for additive manufacturing (AM). The alloy is capable of high-strength performance at elevated temperatures (200-300°C/392-572°F) in the as-built condition. It is believed to be the first powdered AI material to meet those requirements without the need for subsequent heat treatment. The alloy will enable the printing of lighter-weight precision components not currently possible with traditional manufacturing methods, including heat exchangers or other components requiring internal cooling channels.

The amount of aluminum extruded has increased considerably in recent years due to the metal’s wide availability and relatively low cost.

Hunt, a U.K. brand, is launching a new wheelset featuring rims made from niobium aluminum alloy.