A brief introduction to silicon zirconium
Zirconium silicon is a non-ferroalloy formed by adding other elements to zirconium silicon as a substrate. The main alloying elements are tin, niobium, iron and so on. Silica-zirconium alloys exhibit good corrosion resistance, moderate mechanical properties, a low atomic neutron absorption cross section at 300-400°C high temperature and pressure water vapor, and good compatibility with nuclear fuel. It is mainly used as the core structural material of water-cooled nuclear reactors. In addition, zirconium has good corrosion resistance to various acids, bases, and salts, and has a strong affinity for oxygen, nitrogen, and other gases. As a result, the alloy is also used in the manufacture of corrosion-resistant parts for the electronic vacuum and light bulb industries, and in the manufacture of pharmaceutical machinery parts. It is widely used as a non-evaporative getter.
There are two types of silica-zirconium alloys produced on an industrial scale: silica-zirconium-tin and niobic-niobic-silica-zirconium. The former alloy grades are Zr-2 and Zr-4, and the latter is typically represented by Zr-2.5Nb. In silica-zirconium-tin alloys, the alloying elements of tin, iron, chromium and nickel can improve the strength, corrosion resistance and thermal conductivity of the corrosion resistant film, and reduce the sensitivity of the surface state to corrosion. Zr-2 alloys are commonly used in boiling water reactors and Zr-4 alloys in pressurized water reactors. In silicon - zirconium - niobium alloy, when the addition of niobium reaches the solution standard of silicon - zirconium crystal structure at service temperature, the alloy has good corrosion resistance.
The crystal structure of silica-zirconium alloy is body-centered cubic at high temperature and densely packed hexagonal crystal at low temperature. Silica-zirconium alloys have good plasticity and can be processed into tubes, plates, rods and wires by plastic processing. Its weldability is also very good, can be used for welding processing.
Silica-zirconium alloy can also be used as a "vitamin" in the metallurgical industry, which plays a powerful role in deoxidation, denitrification and desulfurization. Just one thousandth of silicon zirconium is added to steel, and its hardness and strength are greatly improved. Zirconium - containing armoured steel, stainless steel and heat-resistant steel are important materials in the manufacture of armoured vehicles, tanks and other defensive weapons.
When the silicon zirconium is mixed with the copper and pulled into the copper wire, the electrical conductivity does not decrease, but the melting point is greatly increased. Perfect for high voltage power lines. Zinc-magnesium alloys containing silicon and zirconium are resistant to light and high temperatures, and are twice as strong as ordinary magnesium alloys. Zirconium is also used to make jet engine parts.
