Download datasheet

GRCop was designed by NASA for the punishing job of separating rocket flame from liquid hydrogen in rocket engine liners. It is now being eyed for use in advanced heat exchangers, electrical devices, plasma spray nozzles, molds for plastic injection and metal casting, and welding electrodes.

Crucible Research manufactures GRCop powder using equipment, procedures, and experience refined over our nine years and ten tons of experience with the alloy. We continuously improve our melting techniques, atomization parameters, and powder handling procedures, and we are the world's leading supplier of GRCop powders.

Crucible melts virgin OFC copper, degassed chromium, and high-purity niobium in every heat.

Melting GRCop

Crucible melts GRCop using a proprietary, strictly choreographed practice designed to:

• minimize impurity elements in the melt
• deliver highly repeatable tap temperatures
• provide stable, low-erosion refractory systems
• minimize residence time
• safely control the highly fluid superheated GRCop.

For every heat, Crucible rebuilds and installs a new furnace to exacting specifications. We install a new crucible, tundish, and nozzle, build a new pour spout, and coat and fire all of the components. Crucible precisely times Cr and Nb additions to the melt to minimize oxygen content of the bath. We apply years of experience in optimizing our sequence of power levels, raw material additions, and vacuum refining steps.

Atomization

Crucible gas atomization produces spherical powders with low surface area, excellent flowability, and high packing density. These powders excel in HIP, extrusion, and spray deposition applications.

Crucible tailors the particle size of its gas atomized powders to balance high yield with low specific surface area. We drive down oxygen by aggressively controlling potential contaminants and maintaining favorable yields of prime powder. Here, Crucible's melt crew taps a 300 lb. heat of GRCop-42.

Inert processing of GRCop powder

GRCop's thermomechanical properties depend on low oxygen content. Crucible minimizes oxygen pick up by performing all operations under a cover of argon gas. To increase screening throughput and improve quality, Crucible designed and purchased a new glovebox with a large-diameter ultrasonic screener. A single pass through the box, which we dedicate exclusively to GRCop powders, classifies, demagnetizes, removes samples for chemistry and sieve analysis, and packages for shipment.

A technician monitors screener performance, argon purity, and sample collection during screening of GRCop-84 to -140 mesh.