NiTiSMA production using ceramic filter during pouring the melt

The usual process to produce NiTi shape memory alloys (SMA) is by vacuum induction melting (VIM) using graphite crucibles which contaminate the bath with carbon. Carbon reacts with titanium precipitating TiC influencing the matrix composition which, in turn, affects the martensitic transformation temperatures. Furthermore, the presence of TiC makes the final product difficult for mechanically process using cold working steps. In this study, we present preliminary results of our attempt to remove the TiC from the melt using ceramic filters during pouring and analyzed the efficiency of the filtering process and some results will be presented. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.