Machining Kovar, Invar, & Inconel
Kovar, Invar, and Inconel nickel alloys provide high strength and structural toughness, making them ideal for a wide selection of industry uses and applications. Due to their unique makeup and structure, these nickel alloys can be fabricated with different processes into various precision parts to suit many applications. Kovar, Invar, and Inconel all exhibit different characteristics and require unique considerations for accurate fabrication. Compared to other materials, Kovar, Invar, and Inconel can be used in highly caustic environments to retain their strength and size in high-temperature range applications.
Petersen Precision has multiple capabilities to create dimensionally consistent parts that match your design requirements, such as fineblanking, CNC machining, CNC turning, wire EDM machining, grinding, lapping, and finishing and deburring. Contact us for more information about Kovar, Invar, & Inconel machining services or request a quote for more detailed pricing information.
Kovar Machining
Kovar is a nickel-iron-cobalt alloy known for its excellent thermal expansion characteristics, making this ideal for creating hermetic glass-to-metal seals, particularly in electronic devices and components. The unique make-up of Kovar provides many specialized machining capabilities, such as slower speeds, higher feed rates, and appropriate tool selection. The high toughness of Kovar causes significant work hardening, which we apply our expertise to carefully select the cutting parameters. Petersen Precision provides many techniques to work with the thermal expansion material, such as drilling, reaming, and tapping.
Invar Machining
Invar is a nickel-iron alloy that exhibits superior dimensional stability across extreme temperatures. Compared to Kovar, Invar is a ferrous alloy that maintains its dimensions and shape when subjected to temperature changes. The unique low thermal expansion material means specialized machining capabilities must be utilized. Positive feed rate should be maintained for machining operations to avoid glazed, work-hardened surfaces. Care must be taken during all cutting operations as well. Petersen Precision provides these types of procedures to ensure high-quality parts are made. We perform different machining techniques based on our expertise, such as turning, drilling, tapping, milling, and reaming.
Inconel Machining
Inconel is a family of nickel-chromium “superalloys” which provide outstanding oxidation and corrosion resistance in high heat and high-pressure applications. The high strength of the alloy presents unique challenges due to its high work-hardening rate and tendency to generate heat. Therefore, careful consideration of tooling, parameters, and processes must be used when performing Inconel machining. Petersen Precision provides top machining practices for our Inconel material. We use carbide and ceramic tools for heat resistance and durability, and optimize feed rate to minimize work hardening and tool wear. Through high-speed milling, we give deeper depths of cut and lighter widths of cut to be effective while also performing cooling processes to manage heat generation. Additional processes used are CNC milling, drilling, grinding, and CNC turning.
Industrial Applications for Kovar, Invar, & Inconel Machining
Kovar, Invar, & Inconel all exhibit different mechanical characteristics and are highly versatile nickel alloys that are unaffected by extreme temperatures. The unique makeup and mechanical properties of these nickel alloys make them ideal for many industrial applications and industries. Depending on the nickel alloy, these can be used in different extreme temperature situations and solutions.
Kovar Machining Applications
The material properties of Kovar produce a coefficient of thermal expansion, making this nickel alloy ideal in glass-to-metal applications or applications where expansion is important. These applications include hermetic sealing for aerospace and solar power management technologies. Additionally, Peterson Precision uses Kovar for sensor applications in the aerospace industry.
Invar Machining Applications
As a low coefficient of thermal expansion nickel alloy, Invar provides dimensional stability for various applications. These applications that benefit from Invar include aerospace components, circuit breakers, magnetic shielding, temperature regulators, optical and precision instruments, and many more precision items. Invar machining processes are best suited to provide parts for the aerospace and electronic industries, but have many applications.
Inconel Machining Applications
Ideal for extreme environment applications, Inconel is useful for a wide range of industries. Popular fabrications of Inconel include aerospace components, nuclear technology reactor components, oil and gas extraction equipment, furnaces, and other high-temperature range environment components.
Kovar, Invar, & Inconel Machining Services at Petersen Precision
With over 30 years of nickel alloy fabrication experience, Petersen Precision is your shop for Kovar machining, Invar machining, and Inconel machining services. We provide high-quality materials and processes and perform application analysis that determines the best method of optimal geometries for high-performance. In addition to our machining capabilities, we provide secondary services to ensure the best quality part customized to any need. View our gallery of completed projects and learn why customers trust us for their machining capabilities.
Contact Us for Your Kovar, Invar, & Inconel Machining Services
Through our expertise and experience, we provide high-quality services to the most demanding of nickel alloys. Contact us for more information about Kovar machining, Invar machining, or Inconel machining, or request a quote for more detailed pricing information.