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A guide to brazing alloys
If your project requires you to combine dissimilar metals together, then you will need a brazing alloy. This is a guide to help you understand more about what they are and how to make sure you get the best possible quality when it comes to choosing brazing alloys.
In effect, brazing is a similar process to soldering but at far higher temperatures. Whilst this usually refers to joining metals together, it has also been used in the ceramics industry. The braze alloy is a molten filler metal that flows into the gap forming a joint that binds the materials together.
High-temperature alloys are primarily based on gold, silver, nickel, aluminium and copper but also feature precious and semi-precious metals such as palladium, titanium and zirconium. The advantage of using this method as opposed to a mechanically fastened joint is that it has a smaller size and weighs a lot less, something that can be crucial if you want to make small component parts. In most instances, the brazed joint will be as strong or even stronger than the metal that has been joined together.
Another major advantage of this method is the fact that brazed alloys can function at higher operating temperatures. The process can be done in a variety of atmospheres including air, ammonia, inorganic vapours, combusted fuel gas or a vacuum furnace.
The process involved in brazing requires a source of heat. This can be via the use of a handheld torch (primarily used for small assemblies and low volume applications), a furnace or some form of induction heating system.
In order to make sure you get the best quality join, the filler and parent materials you use in the process should be compatible on a metallurgic level. It is also vital that the design of the joint has a gap included that will allow the molten filler to be drawn, this can vary depending on different factors such as the atmosphere or the composition of the base material and braze alloy.
Choosing the right alloy for the job depends on the material you are using and the environment that you are working in. For example, some industrial environments such as boiler houses or paper mills will have a high concentration of sulphur or sulphides.
In this application there is a risk of sulphides attacking the phosphorus in the phos copper brazing alloy. In this instance, it is recommended that you use a high silver brazing alloy in order to reduce the risk of leaks.
Preparation is important.
You should make sure that the base metal involved in the process has been properly cleaned, while also avoiding any excess oxidation during the heating process. This will give you the best chance of achieving maximum joint integrity.
A skilled operator will not only need to understand the heating rate required for the application but will also need to ensure that they have applied the correct quantity and ratio of braze filler metal and binder.
Pre-manufactured braze alloy transfer tapes can help in this situations by being able to deliver a precise and uniform level of braze alloy to the application.
There are a wide array of applications for using brazing alloys, depending on the type of material you use. For example, brazing alloys are used extensively within the aerospace industry, energy exploration and extraction as well as in the fields of nuclear engineering and for various uses in the electronics industry.
Nickel brazing filler metal benefits from being both corrosion and heat resistant. It is often used to produce highly stressed sheet metal structures and similar components. There are also specialist variants that are used to create chemical processing equipment parts.
Silver alloys can also be used in the food and beverage industry, ensuring that anything produced in this way are safe to use and be transported.
Alloy Cross Reference Table
This chart shows a partial listing of aerospace-grade braze alloys available from Vitta Corporation, along with a cross-reference to the most common specifications and trade-names. Scroll or swipe to the right to see the full table.
VITTA
ALLOY
NAME | AWS
SPEC.
NO. | AMS
SPEC.
NO. | GENERAL
ELECTRIC
SPEC. | PRATT &
WHITNEY
SPEC. | ROLLS
ROYCE
MSRR9500
SPEC. | SNECMA
DMR 35
SPEC. | ALLIED
SIGNAL
(GARRETT)
EMS 54752 | WALL
COLMONOY
(NICROBRAZ)
ALLOY | PRAXAIR
ALLOY | SULZER
METCO
(AMI/AMDRY)
ALLOY | WESGO
ALLOY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Vitta-Braz 1764 | - | 4764 | B50TF63 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 935 | NICUMAN 37 |
Vitta-Braz 1770 | - | 4770 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
Vitta-Braz 1775 | BNi-1 | 4775 | - | - | - | - | TYPE IV | 125 | NI-167 | 750 | - |
Vitta-Braz 1776 | BNi-1a | 4776 | - | - | - | - | - | LC | NI-510 | 760 | - |
Vitta-Braz 1777 | BNi-2 | 4777 | B50TF204 | - | /97 | -302 | TYPE II | LM | NI-362 | 770 | ICRONIBSI-7 |
Vitta-Braz 1778 | BNi-3 | 4778 | B50TF205 | - | /114 | -304 | TYPE I | 130 | NI-298 | 780 | NIBSI-4 |
Vitta-Braz 1779 | BNi-4 | 4779 | B50TF206 | - | /700 | -305 | TYPE X | 135 | NI-489 | 790 | NIBSI |
Vitta-Braz 1782 | BNi-5 | 4782 | B50TF81 | - | /116 | -332 | TYPE V | 30 | NI-430 | 100 | CRONISI |
Vitta-Braz 1006 | BNi-6 | - | - | - | - | TYPE XI | 10 | - | 766 | - | |
Vitta-Braz 1007 | BNi-7 | - | - | - | - | - | 50 | - | 767 | - | |
Vitta-Braz 1008 | BNi-8 | B50TF94 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 930 | NICUSIM 65 | |
Vitta-Braz 1009 | BNi-9 | B50TF207 | - | - | -307 | TYPE VIII | 150 | NI-276 | 775 | - | |
Vitta-Braz 1783 | BCo-1 | 4783 | B50T56 | PWA 713 | - | - | - | 210 | CO-216 | 400 | COCROWNIBSI |
Vitta-Braz 1787 | - | 4787 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
Vitta-Braz 1013 | - | B50TF13 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
Vitta-Braz 1017 | - | B50TF17 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
Vitta-Braz 1090 | - | B50TF90 | - | - | - | - | - | NI-334 | - | ||
Vitta-Braz 5093 | - | B50TF93 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
Vitta-Braz 1099 | - | B50TF99 | - | - | - | - | 35 | - | 300 | - | |
Vitta-Braz 1142 | - | B50TF142 | PWA 797 | /730 | - | - | - | NI-530 | 103 | - | |
Vitta-Braz 1143 | - | B50TF143 | - | - | - | - | - | NI-568 | 102 | - | |
Vitta-Braz 5148 | - | B50TF148 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
Vitta-Braz 1173 | - | B50TF173 | - | - | - | - | - | NI-173 | - | ||
Vitta-Braz 1183 | - | B50TF183 | - | - | - | - | - | NI-183 | - | ||
Vitta-Braz 1185 | - | B50TF185 | - | - | - | - | - | CO-285 | - | ||
Vitta-Braz 1190 | - | B50TF190 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
Vitta-Braz 1198 | - | B50TF198 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
Vitta-Braz 1202 | - | B50TF202 | - | - | - | - | - | NI-202 | - | ||
Vitta-Braz 1203 | - | B50TF203 | - | - | - | - | - | NI-203 | - | ||
Vitta-Braz 1208 | - | B50TF208 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
Vitta-Braz 1996 | - | - | PWA 996 | /705 | - | TYPE XIII | - | NI-510 | 915 | ICRONIBSI-13 | |
Vitta-Braz 1117 | - | - | PWA 1179 | - | - | TYPE XII | - | NI-555 | 936 | - | |
Vitta-Braz 1118 | - | - | PWA 1185 | - | - | - | - | CO-246 | - | ||
Vitta-Braz 1699 | - | - | PWA 36099 | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
Vitta-Braz 1303 | - | - | - | - | -303 | TYPE IX | - | - | 914 | - | |
Vitta-Braz 1070 | - | - | - | - | - | TYPE VII | 160 | - | 752 | - | |
Vitta-Braz 1030 | - | - | - | - | - | TYPE III | 170 | - | 757 | - | |
Vitta-Braz 1050 | - | - | - | - | - | - | 51 | - | - | ||
Vitta-Braz 1287 | - | B50TF287 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
Vitta-Braz 1288 | - | B50TF288 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||
Vitta-Braz 1292 | - | B50TF292 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Why Vitta?
When it comes to brazing alloys, it is not just about the quality of the material but also ensuring that the people working with that material know how to handle it safely and properly. With over 50 years of experience, Vitta has been leading the field in terms of developing new and innovative materials, adapting to the needs and requirements of a range of industries.
We are confident in the service and products we offer We’ve been manufacturing braze alloys for over 50 years and we welcome your enquiry so that we can offer you our best advice on your specific requirements. To find out more about how Vitta Corporation and our brazing alloys can benefit your business please contact us today.
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