DEVELOPING A TECHNOLOGY FOR PRODUCING RHENIUM ALLOYED MARAGING POWDER STEEL

Abstract

One of the main trends of modern metallurgy and material science is the creation of new steels, alloys and composite materials with functional properties used in transport technology, nuclear energetics, military industry, etc. A modern technology for obtaining ammonium perrhenate from molybdenite concentrates containing rhenium produced in Republic of Armenia has been developed. The mechanism and kinetics of the ferritization process in the Fe2O3–NiO–CoO–MoO3 oxide system are revealed, as a result of which a technology for the synthesis of complex oxide [Ni1-x,Cox](Fe1-x,Mox)2O4 is developed. Also, the mechanism and kinetics of recovery of the mixture, prepared from synthesized complex oxide and ammonium perrhenate (NH4ReO4) is revealed. It is shown that rhenium, being a very active metal and dissolving in the Fe-Ni-Co-Mo system, forms solid solutions and rhenium intermetallides, increasing the strength, hardness, impact strength, heat resistance, corrosion resistance and frost resistance of the powder steel. As a result of comprehensive expert research, a technology has been developed for producing high-strength maraging powder steels alloyed with rhenium, which includes production of ammonium perrhenate from rhenium-containing molybdenite concentrates, synthesis of complex oxides from metal oxides, preparation of a mixture, recovery, which is accompanied by production of steel powder alloyed with rhenium, pressing, sintering and hot extrusion of porous compacts and heat treatment processes. It is shown that the resulting powder steel in terms of its physical, mechanical and technological properties is not inferior to standard steels, and in some cases, surpasses them.