Melt-Spinning Aluminium Super Alloys

For the optical industry there are 3 main application areas:

1. Diamond machined mirrors

• By replacing conventional 6061 with RSA-6061, surface roughness can be improved by a factor of 4. RSA-6061 can be delivered under official qualifications EN-755 and ASTM-B221.
• If better properties are required, RSA-905 offers improved mechanical and physical properties.
• RSA-443 can be used as mirror body with high stiffness and low thermal expansion matching Nickel coating. So bi-metallic effects do not exist anymore. The Nickel coating determines the surface finish; RMS values 1 - 2nm.

2. Mould and insert applications

• Better and cheaper than any other alternative:RSA-905 offers huge advantages compared to conventional Cu-based alloys like brass, Cu-Ni and Cu-Be.
• simple logistics and low cost as no coating operation nor post machining is required.
• increase of mould life with about 100% compared with a Nickel coated surface.

3. Polished mirrors

• RSA-443 can be used as mirror body with high stiffness and low thermal expansion matching Nickel. The polishable Ni-P coating offers RMS values < 1nm. 
• RSA-905 is a polisheable aluminium alloy offering RMS values <1nm. Initial tests look promissing; MRF offers great opportunities.

Advantages

• Higher strength The strength of RSP can compete with the strength of steel or titanium.  In addition, RSP Technology offers special alloys that display high strength at elevated temperatures	• Higher ductility Due to its fine microstructure RSP has a high ductility which allows relatively easy mechanical forming (e.g. higher extrusion speeds, lower extrusion loads or ultra thin wall extrusion down to 0.2 mm).	• Lower thermal expansion The thermal expansion coefficient varies with alloy composition. Depending on the compromise of properties it is possible to optimize just the thermal behavior. All alloys with thermal expansion of steel are in our program.	• Superior surface finish Fine machining of RSP-alloys results in very low surface roughness: down to 5 nm. This makes RSP applicable in fine mechanical parts, mirrors and tools for high precision injection moulding, especially optics such as contact lenses and spectacles.
• Good machining properties Despite its much higher hardness, tests prove that the wear on tools after machining RSA-AlSiX alloys is identical to (or lower than) that of tools that are used for machining conventional alloys.	• Better wear resistance Due to the high wear resistance of RSA-AlSiX alloys, surface treatments such as hard anodising can be omitted under certain conditions.

Markets

• Automotive Industry pistons, cylinders, exhaustvalves, connecting rods, space frame parts	• Aerospace Industry construction parts, heat resistant parts, fasteners	• Sports Industry bicycles, skates, golf clubs, mountaineering and archery equipment	• Electronics thin walled & high precision components (micro-profiles), signal processing, wire	• Machine Building high stiffness - low weight parts, heat resistant parts, hydraulic parts, dies

RSP Production Method