Waverley Brownall

Our philosophy is dominated by quality.

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Titanium Used On Juno SpaceCraft

Titanium Used On Juno SpaceCraft

The spin-stabilised spacecraft Juno has been built with the mighty task to orbit planet Jupiter.

NASA have issued fantastic information reagrding the spacecraft and its travel – including the ability to track Juno’s position using their website. ​

Launched near 5 years ago, we’re right on time as Juno enters orbit around Jupiter.

Titanium And The One Giant Leap For Mankind

This alloy has long been known for its incredible strength.

juno spacecraft jupiter

It provides fantastic resistance to challenges on our planet – such as seawater corrosion.

However, one area we rarely hear about is its durability on spacecraft structures.

Titanium has high strength compared to its weight, but this isn’t the only reason why it is used so often in the aerospace industry.

​The Properties Of Titanium

This metal has the ability to withstand some very high temperatures. As you can imagine, in space, it is essential for materials ​to withstand incredible atmospheric pressures. Although Juno won’t face the same temperature problems as low-Earth orbiting crafts and satellites will, it will be experiencing a lack of sun radiation.

At the centre of Juno, sits the vehicle’s electronics vault that protects the precious electrical set-up from the harsh environment surrounding it. ​Juno will need to endure not only cruising through deep-space, but it will need to endure flying through Jupiter’s intense radiation belts.

Juno’s radiation vault is made of titanium alloy with a thickness of one centimeter.​

The top deck of Juno is planned to receive a radiation dose of 22 Mrad, showing the amazing shielding capability of the vault.

Titanium In Space

Did you know?

Titanium Grade 2

titanium grade 2 alloy

Waverley Brownall are proud manufacturers of fittings and valves in Grade 2 for uses in the aerospace, oil and gas, chemical and processing industries.

For more information on our special metals, email: enquiries@waverleybrownall.co.uk

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Corrosion Resistant Alloys In The Marine Industry

Corrosion Resistant Alloys In The Marine Industry

Corrosion resistant alloys are used extensively within the marine industry.

Applications where seawater is present requires tough alloys that are able to withstand corrosive surroundings.

Corrosion Resistant Alloys

Seawater can have devastating effects on metals such as iron where the surface of the metal will be attacked relentlessly. However, certain high-performance metals will give longevity and durability if they hold a number of certain properties.

Inconel and Monel are two special metals that perform highly within the marine industry. This section will cover the advantages of using these materials within fittings and valves in an aqueous environment.

Monel 400 Alloy

The nickel-based alloy MONEL 400 offers high strength and of course, corrosion resistance. It is an excellent choice for applications where seawater will be attacking the metal fitting, tube or valve.

Inconel 625 

INCONEL 625 offers high resistance against pitting and crevice corrosion. Its high tensile strength makes it the perfect alloy for items such as propeller blades. Inconel 625 ranks within Class I of alloys that are most resistant to the marine environment.

stainless steel tube fittings

625 has good corrosion fatigue strength when seawater is present. Poorer performances will be seen from alloys such as k-500 or x-750, however, this is in regard to evidence of pitting within stagnant seawater.*

* Versatile Corrosion Resistance of INCONEL alloy 625 in Various Aqueous and Chemical Processing Environments, Presented by Inco Alloys International Inc.

Titanium 

Titanium is another metal that holds corrosion resistance properties. It can resist the effects of corrosion within fresh water or steam in temperatures up to 316°C. The temperature of resistance for seawater sits at 260°C. Deposits from marine environments may form, but pitting and crevice corrosion will be completely absent from the alloy itself.

Titanium is considered to be one of the best metals for seawater elements, it is perfect for splash zones and ASTM Grade 2 is essentially immune to seawater stress corrosion cracking. *Offered as a material for fittings and valves by Waverley Brownall.

This hardy material is known for its expense, but alloys with such strong resistances are an investment for the long-term health of structures such as offshore platforms as fatigue will not be an issue with the presence of seawater.

We offer material choices such as Hastelloy C276 and Incoloy 825.

In flowing and stagnant seawater conditions, Hastelloy C276 and Inconel 625 materials give excellent corrosion resistance. Inconel 825 can be susceptible to bio-fueling.

Corrosion Prevention

sailing boat water

Corrosion resistant alloys do not need the consistent maintenance or treatments that other metals may require. Titanium or other metals that work well within the marine industry are investments that will secure health, safety and efficiency of the application in question for years to come.

It is cost-effective for companies in the long term, considering maintenance costs and installation replacements are virtually non-existent within a much longer time frame.

Some fittings manufacturers will charge for a full replacement of tube and fitting after 5 years – with alloys such as Titanium, this will be prolonged substantially.

Titanium alloys are known to be difficult-to-machine materials, which causes an even higher price-tag for fittings and valves. However – Waverley Brownall have been machining titanium alloys for over 40 years with specialist knowledge.

We are happy to take orders for titanium fittings for companies who are willing to invest in this incredible solution.

Types Of Corrosion Within A Marine Environment

seawater
  • Galvanic corrosion
  • Intergranular corrosion
  • Stress corrosion cracking
  • Crevice corrosionm
  • Erosion corrosion
  • Marine growth

Seawater environments can be divided into three main zones.

Zone 1) The first zone covers alloys that are fully immersed or continuously submerged.

Zone 2) Partially immersed such as tidal environments and splash zones .

Zone 3) Zone 3 covers corrosion that is predominantly due to the surrounding environment. As an example, this covers atmospheric and subsoil factors.

Zone 1, Submerged – The main elements that will impact the level of corrosion are temperature, oxygen levels, bio-fueling and pollution. For example, with our standard stainless steel products, pitting and crevice corrosion are the most common concerns for 316 in Zone 1.

For Zone 2 (partially submerged) for areas such as the splash zone, stainless steel has a much higher pitting corrosion rate due to oxygen exposure.

Alloy Selection For The Marine Industry

Do you require more information on the selection of special metals for a range of industries?

We are offering our readers a FREE GUIDE to assist you!

high performance alloy

A Guide In The Selection Of Special Metals

FREE GUIDE
Posted for free directly to your address
Presented by Waverley Brownall Limited

Your A5 sized handbook will be posted to the address that
you fill out and submit in the form.  

Your guide will include:

  • Corrosion by acids
  • Corrosion by alkali and salts
  • Aqueous corrosion resistance chart
  • Material composition chart
  • The benefits and properties of each metal we offer

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Thread Types And Standards

Thread Types And Standards

See below for common thread type identification.

BSPT British Standard Pipe Thread Tapered
BSPP British Standard Pipe Thread Parallel
NPT National American Pipe Thread Tapered
NPTF National American Pipe Thread Tapered (Fuel)
TPI Threads Per Inch

Thread Types

BSPT (British Standard Pipe Thread)

Taper threads, such as BSPT are denoted by the letter R in many circumstances.

BSPP (British Standard Parallel Pipe)

BSPP threads were originally known as BSPF (pipe fitting thread) or BSPM (pipe mechanical thread).

BSPP parallel threads are denoted often by the letter G.

The acronyms for British Standard pipe threads have been adopted internationally and Waverley Brownall products are available in BSPT and BSPP threads.

Need help? Email enquiries@waverleybrownall.co.uk

NPT (National Pipe Thread)

NPT is the U.S acronym for tapered threads used on fittings and pipes that are, of course, tapered!

Taper threads pull tight to cause a seal.

Commonly used sizes with NPT are 1/8″, 1/2″ and 1/4″. NPT threaded fittings are part of our Ringlok twin ferrule compression fittings with various sizes for a number of tube applications.

NPTF (National Pipe Thread Fuel)

This type of thread is expertly designed for reducing leakage without use of a sealant such as PTFE tape.

Did you know? NPTF is also known as a Dryseal American National Standard Taper Pipe Thread.

Compression Fitting And Valve Material Chart

Standard material: Stainless steel – Stock and raw materials available immediately.

We can manufacture fittings and valves
in any of the materials listed below, however, 
for timely projects customers should consider our 
availability to avoid manufacture waiting time.

Key:

  • Available/Green – Readily available with ex-stock items or raw materials ready to order with fast delivery options.
  • Moderate/Orange – Moderate stock indicates a medium level of stock available, however, you should order as quickly as possible to lessen a possible wait.
  • Limited/Red – Order now! Don’t delay your order of these products, especially for timely projects.
  • ORDER – Send us your enquiry or order and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
Material Fittings Valves Raw Material
Monel 400 Available Available Moderate stock
Inconel 625 Limited Stock Limited Stock Limited Stock
Incoloy 825 Available Available Moderate stock
Hastelloy C276 Available Available Moderate stock
Titanium Moderate stock Moderate stock Moderate stock
6MO Moderate stock Moderate stock Moderate stock
Duplex Limited Stock Limited Stock Limited Stock
Super Duplex Limited Stock Limited Stock Limited Stock

enquiries@waverleybrownall.co.uk