Tantalum and its alloy blank can be produced by powder metallurgy process or smelting process. Powder metallurgy technology is mainly used to produce small tantalum products and blank for processing. Powder tantalum raw materials obtained by thermal reduction or electrolysis are pressed and shaped for vacuum sintering. Sintering process depends on the requirements of product use. A sintering (1600 ~ 2200 ℃) used in the production of smelting with electrodes and the porous anode. Secondary sintering is used to produce blank for forging, rolling and drawing. Forging or rolling is often carried out between sintering and sintering, and the processing rate is about 50%. Secondary sintering temperature is 2000 ~ 2700 ℃.
Vacuum consumable arc and electron beam melting process are common methods to make tantalum and its alloy ingots. Electron beam smelting technology is mainly used for the purification of tantalum. Large diameter ingots with more uniform alloy composition can be made by consumable arc smelting technology. The electrodes of consumable arc smelting can be made by sintered bars or electron beam smelting ingots. Electron beam regional melting method can be used to further purify tantalum or prepare single crystal.
Tantalum can be used to make all kinds of malleable alloys with high melting point. These alloys can be used as materials for super-hard metal processing tools, as well as for high-temperature alloys used in jet engines, chemical laboratory equipment, nuclear reactors and missiles. Tantalum is highly malleable and can be stretched into silk. These wires are used to gasify various metals, such as aluminum. Tantalum is widely used in surgical tools and implants because it can resist the erosion of biological fluids without stimulating tissue. For example, tantalum can bond directly to hard tissue, so many bone implants have porous tantalum coatings.
Tantalum is resistant to corrosion by almost all acids except hydrofluoric and thermosulfuric acids. Tantalum can therefore be used as a chemical reaction vessel and as a conduit for corrosive liquids. The heat exchange coil used in the heating process of hydrochloric acid is tantalum. The production of uhf radio transmitter electron tubes USES a large amount of tantalum, which can capture oxygen and nitrogen in the electron tubes and form oxides and nitride respectively, thus maintaining the required high vacuum state.
