Metals for DefenceFrom planes and rockets in the sky, ships and submarines in the sea to motorcycles and tanks on land, as an industrial sector defence demands a wide range of special alloys for many applications, which are capable of coping with varying terrain.For example, military aircraft such as the Typhoon Eurofighter, which are the product of different member states, involve a combination of cutting edge design and innovative technology. The airframe surface is made up of 70% carbon fibre composites and an additional 12% is glass reinforced plastic. In fact only 15 % of the Typhoon Eurofighter is made from metals, which when allied to its aerodynamic design have produced an aircraft that is some 30% lighter and approximately 20% smaller than it would have been had more traditional materials been used. At the other end of the spectrum the leviathan sixty two and a half tonne Challenger tank is a weighty machine powered by two 12 cylinder diesel engines producing 1200 horsepower. It is capable of almost 60 km/ph on the road and about 40 km/ph across country. Protected by second generation Chobham armour, a mixture of ceramics within a metal matrix, and with a gun made from Electro Slag Reduced steel the Challenger tank has been one of the mainstays of the Army. In the ever changing world of the defence industry the Challenger 2E tank has now also been developed. Meanwhile out at sea there are submarines capable of diving to enormous depths, displacing over 7500 tonnes. Powered by Rolls Royce PWR2 pressurised water reactors, they can travel underwater at almost 30 knots. The latest incarnation of these PWR engines enable it to circumnavigate the globe 40 times without the need to re-fuel. William Rowland Limited’s customers in the defence sector use ferro alloys including ferro silicon, ferro manganese, ferro molybdenum; ferro chromium, ferro vanadium and nickel that have been sourced to the highest standard. |
