Inconel and nickel alloys are seriously impressive, but most people don鈥檛 realize just how old they are. The Inconel family has been around for over 90 years, and fun fact: 鈥淚nconel鈥� is actually a trademarked name. I discovered this at IMTS 2022 when an additive company I was interviewing refused to use the word and instead called it 鈥渘ickel 718鈥� and 鈥渘ickel 625鈥� because the trademark had previously caused them trouble. Can you believe it? I mean, come on. It鈥檚 been around for more than 20 years. Don鈥檛 trademarks expire or something? Well, turns out trademarks stick around as long as the owner keeps using them. Thanks, Legal Zoom, for that tidbit of info.
Let鈥檚 Take a Look at Some Notable Nickel Alloys
Take German silver, for example. The name is pretty misleading because it鈥檚 neither German nor silver. Back in China, there was this naturally occurring ore composition called 鈥減aktong鈥� or 鈥渂aitong鈥� that people smelted into an alloy. Some German metallurgists then recreated this composition, and that鈥檚 how it got the name 鈥淕erman silver.鈥� But it鈥檚 about 60% copper, 20% nickel, and 20% zinc. No silver at all! It鈥檚 basically just nickel brass. Watchmakers love using it in haute horlogerie (fancy watchmaking), probably for its silvery luster.
Now, let鈥檚 talk about Monel, a nickel alloy developed before Inconel. Monel is made up of 52%-67% nickel, with the rest being mostly copper along with a sprinkle of iron, manganese, carbon, and silicon. It鈥檚 not even a cupronickel alloy because it has less than 60% copper.
Inconel Etymology
In 1905, a guy named Robert Crooks Stanley, who worked at Inco, the International Nickel Co., discovered Monel. My hypothesis is (couldn鈥檛 find any confirmation on the web, so hit me up if you know) Stanley and Inco thought it was significant enough to name after the first chairman of the company, Ambrose Monell. But back in those days, you couldn鈥檛 legally name a discovery after someone. So, they took off the last letter and called it 鈥淢onel.鈥� Then, when they developed their next big alloy, I鈥檓 assuming they combined the company name 鈥淚nco鈥� with the last part of their first significant alloy, 鈥淢onel,鈥� and bam! Inconel was born. Don鈥檛 quote me on this, though. It鈥檚 just my speculation.
But first: What is Inconel? If you still don鈥檛 know, get out from under your rock and check the Wikipedia page. I鈥檓 not wasting text space here. But let me tell you this much: Nickel superalloys like Inconel are all the rage in modern manufacturing. You鈥檇 think they were just invented in the last decade! They鈥檙e incredibly heat and corrosion-resistant, but here鈥檚 the catch 鈥� they鈥檙e a pain to process in manufacturing. Take a pause here and check out the timeline below for the fascinating history of Inconel.
Conclusion
So, the history of Inconel has its ups and downs, but here鈥檚 the good news: Thanks to additive manufacturing, it鈥檚 no longer impossible to work with. Nickel is one of the easiest base metals to use in additive manufacturing, which is why after over 90 years, it鈥檚 finally becoming popular. We can say that metal AM is Inconel鈥檚 happy ending, but I think the revolution is just getting started!
To read the rest of the Transportation Issue of MT Magazine, click .
