Nuclear Energy

The word 'Nuclear' is often interpreted as danger. The nature of the industry means that the materials used have to withstand all kinds of environments. The use of alloys such as Titanium, C276, 625, 718 give an indication of the conditions that equipment has to work in. They have high strength, high temperature. They are also difficult to produce and to machine, and carry a high cost for the raw material. These alloys can also be difficult to obtain resulting in long lead times.

Many products for use in nuclear power stations have to meet strict requirements in terms of in-service corrosion resistance. This is why a large quantity of components are manufactured from austenitic stainless steels. Some of these, which undergo particularly heavy mechanical loadings, also require good wear and seizure resistance. A constant level of corrosion resistance and high wear resistance are two requirements that are difficult to reconcile when using classical processes. The use of additional protective coatings is a method often employed to give a component a longer working life.