Tantalum metal is hard, ductile, toughness is better than copper, and the expansion coefficient is very small; Stable chemical properties, no reaction with water and air at room temperature, cold and hot states have strong corrosion resistance, can resist all inorganic acids except hydrofluoric acid.
The tantalum metal was immersed in sulfuric acid at 200℃ for one year, and the surface damage was only 0.006 mm.
Tantalum is widely used in the following fields: (1) in the electronic industry: electrodes and leads in tantalum capacitors, tantalum foil capacitors, liquid tantalum capacitors and some special types of solid tantalum capacitors as diffusion insulation materials.
(2) Application of superalloy: tantalum occupies an increasing proportion in foreign aeroengine blades with good performance; Laboratory and the University are developing high-temperature anti-oxidation Cr-Cr2Ta alloy, which can be widely used in the blades, seals and nozzles of gas turbines to improve the thermal efficiency of gas turbines.
(3) Weapon system: due to its high density and dynamic elongation, it has been successfully applied to the cartridge cover of explosive forming bombs and armour breaking bombs.
Tantalum has been applied in weapons and nuclear power systems in the United States, and the technology of depositing tantalum by sputtering in gun barrel has been studied. The tantalum barrel is to be used to replace the chrome barrel of large caliber guns so as to prolong the life of gun barrel.
(4) Coating material: Because of its stability in acid and base and its good compatibility with tungsten in alloy smelting, tantalum metal is used in tungsten targets in neutron generators.
The results from the Energy Accelerator Institute and the University show that the neutron generation rate of the W-TA composite target is 20% higher than that of the pure W target.
(5) Biomedical treatment: Tantalum and tantalum alloy have stable chemical properties, better biocompatibility, do not dissolve harmful ions, and can be stable in the physiological environment; After implantation in human body, biological tissue cells are easy to grow on the surface of tantalum metal to promote cell proliferation. Tantalum metal plays an important role in the medical field.
