Imma Perfetto
Cosmos science journalist
A new copper-tantalum-lithium alloy has been shown to remain incredibly strong even at high temperatures, making it one of the most resilient copper-based materials ever created.
The material’s “exceptional thermal stability and high-temperature mechanical properties” will have applications for aerospace, defence and industrial applications. It is described in a paper in the journal Science.
Martin Harmer, professor emeritus of materials science and engineering at Lehigh University in the US and a co-author of the study, says this is “cutting-edge science”.
The unique material, he says, combines copper’s excellent heat and electrical conductivity with strength and durability on the scale of nickel-based superalloys.
Patrick Cantwell, a research scientist at Lehigh University and co-author of the study, adds that the alloy holds its shape under extreme, long-term thermal exposure and mechanical stress, resisting deformation even near its melting point.
The alloy’s properties are due to its nanostructure of tantalum-coated copper-lithium clusters – which neither dissolve nor coarsen at temperatures of up to 800°C – within a copper matrix.
“It provides industry and the military with the foundation to create new materials for hypersonics and high-performance turbine engines,” says Harmer.
