1

36% NICKEL-IRON ALLOY

For Low Temperature Service
Introduction
36 per cent ni ckel -i ron al l oy possesses a usef ul
combi nat i on of l ow t hermal expansi on, moder-
at el y hi gh st rengt h and good t oughness at t em-
perat ures down t o t hat of l i qui d hel i um, -452 F
(-269 C). These propert i es coupl ed wi t h good
wel dabi l i t y and desi rabl e physi cal propert i es
make t hi s al l oy at t ract i ve f or many cryogeni c
appl i cat i ons. A modi f i ed f orm of 36 per cent
ni ckel -i ron al l oy known as I NVAR* M 63 has
been used f or LNG membrane t anks. I t i s avai l -
abl e as pl at e, st ri p, sheet , pi pe, t ubi ng, bars,
bi l l et s, f orgi ngs and wi re.
Specifications
ASTM Desi gnat i on A 658 covers 36 per cent
ni ckel -i ron al l oy pl at es i nt ended pri mari l y f or
wel ded pressure vessel s. The mat eri al i s sup-
pl i ed i n t he anneal ed condi t i on t o meet t he re-
qui rements of the ASME Boi l er and Pressure
Vessel Code. The maxi mum al l owabl e st ress
val ue i n tensi on for the ASME counterpart, SA-
658, gi ven i n Sect i on VI I I , Di vi si on 1 of t he
ASME Code i s 16,200 psi (112 N/mm
2
).
A proposed ASTM speci f i cat i on f or 36 per cent
ni ckel -i ron al l oy pi pi ng i s under devel opment .
Tensile Requirements
The f ol l owi ng t ensi l e propert i es are speci f i ed i n
the ASTM standard:
Tensile Strength .................... 65,000-80,000 psi
.................... 448-552 N/mm
2

Yield Strength
(0.2% Offset), min ............ 35,000 psi
............ 241 N/ mm
2
Elongation
(2 in. or 50 mm), min, % .......... 30.0
Heat Treatment
AnnealingASTM A 658
The f ol l owi ng procedure f or heat t reat ment i s
recommended i n t he above ment i oned st andard:
Heat t o 1450 50 F (790 28 C); hol d at
t hi s t emperat ure hour per i nch (25 mm) of
t hi ckness, but not l ess t han 15 mi nut es; cool
i n st i l l ai r. Typi cal hardnesses af t er several
al t ernat e anneal i ng t reat ment s are shown i n
Tabl e I.
Chemical Composition
The chemi cal composi t i on as gi ven i n t he ASTM
st andard i s as f ol l ows:
Carbon ............................... 0.10 max
Manganese ......................... 0.50 max
Phosphorus ........................ 0.025 max
Sulfur ................................. 0.025 max
Silicon ................................ 0.35 max
Nickel ................................. 35.5-36.5
Iron ..................................... Balance
Not es: Phosphorus and sul f ur each 0. 010 max i f
speci f i ed. Chromi um, mol ybdenum and
cobal t each 0. 50 max but not i nt ent i on-
al l y added.
Stability Anneal
The f ol l owi ng t hree-st age heat t reat ment was
devel oped
1
t o achi eve t he opt i mum combi na-
t i on of l ow expansi on coef f i ci ent and hi gh
di mensi onal st abi l i t y:
1. Heat to 1525 F (830 C), hol d hour per
i nch (25 mm) of t hi ckness, wat er quench.
*Tr ademar k of Soci t Cr eusot - Loi r e ( METALI MPHY) , Fr ance.
Element Composition, %
TABLE I
Annealing of 36 Per Cent Nickel-Iron Alloy
Temperature Cooling Hardness
F C Medium Rockwell B
1200 650 Air 87-88
1500 815 Air 77-78
1800 980 Air 70-71
1900 1040 Air 66-68


2
2. Reheat t o 600 F (315 C), hol d 1 hour per
i nch (25 mm) of t hi ckness, ai r cool .
3. Reheat t o 205 F (96 C), hol d 48 hours,
ai r cool .
Mechanical Properties
Tensile Properties and Hardness
Typi cal room temperature mechani cal prop-
erti es of anneal ed and col d worked 36 per cent
ni ckel -i ron al l oy are shown i n Tabl e II.
2
The
effect of temperature on the tensi l e properti es
of pl ate and forged bars i n the anneal ed
condi ti on are shown i n Fi gures 1 and 2.
36 per cent ni ckel -i ron al l oy i s not notch-sen-
si ti ve: the rati o of notched tensi l e strength to
unnotched tensi l e strength i s on the order of
1.10 at room temperature as wel l as at -320 F
(-196 C).
3
Fi gur e 1. Ef f ect of t emper at ur e on t he t ypi cal t ensi l e pr oper t i es of
anneal ed 36% Ni - Fe al l oy.
Fi gur e 2. Ef f ect of t emper at ur e on t he t ensi l e pr oper t i es of f or ged
36% Ni - Fe al l oy i n t he anneal ed condi t i on.
TABLE II
Typical Mechanical Properties of 36 Per Cent Nickel-Iron Alloy



Annealed
Cold
Worked
15%
Cold
Worked
25%
Cold
Worked
30%
Tensile Strength, psi 71,400 93,000 100,000 106,000
N/mm
2
(492) (641) (690) (731)
Yield Strength
(0.2% Offset), psi 40,000 65,000 89,500 95,000
N / mm
2
(276) (448) (617) (655)
Elongation (2 in. or 50 mm), % 41 14 9 8
Reduction of Area, % 72 64 62 59
Brinell Hardness 131 187 207 217


3
The mechani cal propert i es of 36 per cent
ni ckel -i ron al l oy are not af f ect ed by exposure
to l ow temperatures for l ong peri ods of ti me.
Exposure f or t i mes up t o several t housand
hours at 320 F (196 C) wi t h and wi t hout
appl i ed st ress have not al t ered i t s mechani cal
propert i es, even i n t he case of not ch-sensi -
t i vi t y.
Impact Properties
The effect of temperature on the Charpy i m-
pact val ues of anneal ed and col d worked 36
per cent ni ckel -i ron al l oy i s shown i n Fi gure 3.
Fatigue Properties
The room temperature fati gue strength at 10
8
cycl es of pol i shed rotati ng-beam R. R. Moore
speci mens of anneal ed 36 per cent ni ckel -i ron
al l oy i s approxi matel y 40,000 psi (276 N/mm
2
).
Fi gure 4 shows axi al fati gue properti es of col d
rol l ed 0.040 i nch (1.0 mm) thi ck sheet at room
temperature and at 100 F (73 C). Typi cal
f at i gue endurance l i mi t s at 10
7
cycl es f or
sheet speci mens t est ed i n al t ernat i ng pl ane
bendi ng at const ant st rai n ampl i t ude are
27, 000-31, 000 psi (186-214 N/mm
2
) at room
t emperat ure and 39,000-41, 000 psi (269-283
N/mm
2
) at 320 F (196 C).
3
Welding
For pressure vessel const ruct i on, 36 per cent
ni ckel -i ron al l oy f al l s i nt o Group P-10g, Tabl e
Q-11.1, Secti on IX of the ASME Code governi ng
wel di ng procedure qual i fi cati on. The ASME ten-
si l e requi rement f or t he wel d met al i s 65, 000 psi
(448 N/mm
2
) mi ni mum. Wel ds of mat chi ng
st rengt h t o t he base pl at e have been achi eved
usi ng appropri at e f i l l er met al s such as modi f i ed
36 per cent ni ckel -i ron f i l l er met al , I NCONEL*
Fi l l er Metal 92 and HASTELLOY** al l oy W.
The 36 per cent ni ckel -i ron al l oy can be readi l y
wel ded. However, where mat chi ng t hermal and
mechani cal propert i es are requi red, ei ther TIG
(t ungst en i nert gas) or t he short -ci rcui t i ng modi -
f i cat i on of MIG (met al i nert gas) wel di ng pro-
cesses shoul d be used. The shi el di ng gas nor-
mal l y used i s argon, al t hough hel i um-argon
mi xt ures may be used. I n general , wel di ng pro-
cedures and precaut i ons are not much more
st ri ngent t han t hose exerci sed f or hi gh qual i t y
wel ds i n t he AI SI 300 seri es st ai nl ess st eel s. A
commerci al l y avai l abl e f i l l er met al of modi f i ed
36 per cent ni ckel -i ron al l oy cl osel y mat chi ng
t he base met al i n expansi on propert i es has
been devel oped.
4
Thi s composi t i on i n per cent
i s l i st ed bel ow:
Modi f i ed 36 per cent Ni ckel -
I ron Al l oy Fi l l er Met al
Nickel ....................................................... 36.0
Carbon ...................................................... 0.1
Manganese ............................................... 3.0
Silicon ...................................................... 0.1 max
Titanium .................................................... 1.0
Sulfur* ...................................................... .01 max
Phosphorus* ............................................. .02 max
Iron ........................................................... Bal
* Total percentage of P plus S not to exceed 0.025%.
* Regi st er ed t r ademar k of The I nt er nat i onal Ni ckel Company, I nc.
** Regi st er ed t r ademar k of Cabot Cor por at i on.
Fi gur e 3. Ef f ect of t est t emper at ur e on Char py I mpact Val ues f or
36% Ni - Fe al l oy.
Fi gur e 4. Axi al f at i gue char act er i st i cs of smoot h 0. 040 i n. ( 1. 0 mm)
36% Ni - Fe al l oy sheet at 80 F ( 27 C) and - 100 F ( - 73 C) .
Stability of Properties on Exposure
to Low Temperatures for Long Times


4
Typi cal mechani cal propert i es of TI G wel ds at
t hree t est t emperat ures are shown i n Tabl e
111.
5
The data reported were determi ned on
i nch (6. 4 mm) pl at e but si mi l ar propert i es are
achi eved readi l y i n sheet t hi ckness wel ds and i n
heavi er pl at e wel dment s. Wel di ng of 36 per cent
ni ckel -i ron al l oy pi pe usi ng t he i nert gas
processes i s covered i n NASA Speci fi cati on
75M09470.
36 per cent nickel-iron alloy is readily resistance
welded. Welding variables are essentially the same
as those used for annealed austenitic stainless
steels. Spot welds meeting all requirements of
MIL-W-6858 have been made in matching and
dissimilar sheet thickness combinations from
1/16 to inch (1.6-6.4 mm).
6

Where t hermal expansi on consi derat i ons permi t ,
36 per cent ni ckel -i ron al l oy can be j oi ned
readi l y t o i t sel f as wel l t o a vari et y of i ron and
ni ckel -base al l oys usi ng such general purpose
f i l l er met al s as I NCONEL Fi l l er Met al 92 and
HASTELLOY al l oy W. Typi cal propert i es are
shown i n Tabl e I V.
5

The al l oy i s al so subj ect t o deep pi t t i ng on
bol dl y exposed surf aces i n f l owi ng sea wat er at
two feet per second (0.6 m/sec). (Tabl e V).
Physical Properties
The t hermal expansi on propert i es i n t he an-
neal ed condi t i on are shown i n Tabl e VI .
7
Fi gure
5 i l l ust rat es t he t hermal cont ract i on of anneal ed
and col d worked 36 per cent ni ckel -i ron al l oy
bet ween room t emperat ures and 423 F
(253 C). Col d work usual l y reduces t hermal
expansi on whi l e composi t i on vari at i ons usual l y
rai se expansi on val ues.
The ef f ect of t emperat ure upon t he modul us of
el ast i ci t y, modul us of ri gi di t y and t hermal
conduct i vi t y of 36 per cent ni ckel -i ron al l oy are
shown respect i vel y i n Fi gures 6, 7 and 8.
Corrosion
General corrosi on rates of 36 per cent ni ckel -i ron
al l oy are bel ow one mi l per year (.025 mm/yr) for
both i ndustri al and mari ne atmospheri c ex-
posures. (Tabl e V). The 36 per cent ni ckel -i ron
al l oy has shown some suscepti bi l i ty to stress-
corrosi on cracki ng i n tests when exposed to sea
water or mari ne atmospheres. Data obtai ned from
mul ti pl e U-bend speci men exposures are
summari zed i n Tabl e V. Rapi d cracki ng has been
reported i n aci d chl ori de envi ronments of pH 2
and at el evated temperatures.
Fi gur e 5. Ther mal cont r act i on of col d dr awn and anneal ed 36%
Ni - Fe al l oy f r om 70 F ( 21 C) .
TABLE III
Mechanical Properties of TIG Welded 36 Per Cent Nickel-Iron Alloy
a


Test
Temperature
Tensile
Strength
Yield Strength
(0.2% Offset)
Elongation
(1 in. or 25 mm)
Charpy
V-Notch Impact
b

Condition F C psi N/mm
2
psi N/mm
2
% ft-Ib J
As 70 21 70,200 484 44,600 308 26.0-30.0 46 62
Welded 320 196 120,800 833 88,800 612 23.0
423 253 126,100 869 110,100 759 17.0-20.0 19 26
Welded and 70 21 72,000 496 43,600 301 25.0-30.0 56 76
Annealed 320 196 122,400 844 89,300 616 22.0
at 1450 F 423 253 129,800 895 105,500 727 20.0-20.5 24 32

a Pl at e i nch ( 6. 4 mm) t hi ck usi ng modi f i ed 36% ni ckel - i r on al l oy f i l l er met al .
b Subsi ze i mpact speci men.


5
TABLE IV
Butt Weld Mechanical Properties of TIG Welded Dissimilar Metals
Mechanical Properties at Indicated Test Temperatures
a

36 Ni-Fe +70 F (21 C)
Welded Filler TS
c
.2% YS Elong. CVN
d

to: wire
b
ksi N/mm
2
ksi N/mm
2
(2 in. or 50 mm), % ft-1b J
36 Ni-Fe 92 79 545 61 421 27 77 104
AISI 304 92 75 517 1 42 290 32 55 75
W 76 524 1 43 297 28
AISl 304L 92 76 524 1 41 283 33 54 73
W 75 517 0 38 262 45
AISl 316 92 75 517 1 43 297 26 40 54
W 76 524 1 43 297 30
AISl 321 92 75 517 1 44 303 27 45 61
W 76 524 1 45 310 25
AISl 347 92 76 524 1 44 303 24 38 52
W 76 524 1 45 310 25
AISl 1020 92 68 469 0 46 317 18 35 48
W 68 469 0 46 317 20


36 Ni-Fe 320 F (196 C)
Welded Filler TS
c
.2% YS Elong. CVN
d

to: wire
b
ksi N/mm
2
ksi N/mm
2
(2 in. or 50 mm), % ftIb J
36 Ni-Fe 92 137 945 97 669 35 46 62
AISl 304 92 133 917 W 53 365 21 39 53
W 129 889 W 50 348 20
AISl 304L 92 135 931 W 43 297 28 30 41
W 132 910 W 44 303 26
AISl 316 92 133 917 W 89 614 20 28 39
W 132 910 W 79 545
AISl 321 92 138 952 1 53 365 29 29 39
W 126 869 W 54 372 20
AISl 347 92 141 972 1 72 496 30 20 27
W 136 938 W 71 490 25
AISl 1020 92 131 903 0 95 655 14 19 26
W 123 848 W 79 545 12


36 Ni-Fe 423 F (253 C)
Welded Filler TS
c
.2% YS Elong. CVN
d

to: wire
b
ksi N/mm
2
ksi N/mm
2
(2 in. or 50 mm), % ftIb J
36 Ni-Fe 92 140 965 109 752 32 46 62
AISl 304 92 136 938 1 63 434 29 36 49
W 140 965 W 60 414 19
AISl 304L 92 128 883 W 46 317 22 36 49
W 138 952 W 49 338 19
AISl 316 92 145 1000 1 101 696 27 29 39
W 125 862 W 84 579 17
AISl 321 92 137 945 1 54 372 26 28 38
W 136 938 W 59 407 17
AISl 347 92 144 993 1 80 552 27 21 28
W 138 952 1 79 545 21
AlSl 1020 92 113 779 0 102 703 2.0 19 26
W 103 710 0 86 593 5.0

aAl l mat er i al s - i nch ( 6. 4 mm) t hi ck pl at e, anneal ed pr i or t o wel di ng. cW =Fai l ed i n wel d met al
b92 si gni f i es I NCONEL Fi l l er Met al 92 1 =Fai l ed i n 36 Ni - Fe par ent met al
W si gni f i es HASTELLOY al l oy W. O =Fai l ed i n ot her par ent met al

dSubsi ze i mpact speci men.

6
Physical Constants
Typi cal val ues of i ndi cat ed physi cal const ant s
8
f or 36 per cent ni ckel -i ron al l oy are shown be-
l ow:
TABLE V
General Corrosion Rates
English Units Metric Units
Modulus of Elasticity 20.5 x 10
6
psi 141 x 10
3
N/mm
2

(see Figure 6)
Modulus of Rigidity (Shear) 8.1 x 10
6
psi 56 x 10
3
N/mm
2

(see Figure 7)
Poisson's Ratio 0.290
Density 0.294 Ib/cu in. 8.14 g/cu cm
Electrical Resistivity 490 ohm (circ mil/ft) 81.5 microhm-cm
Specific Heat 0.123 Btu/Ib/F (77-212 F) 0.123 cal/g/C (25-100 C)
Thermal Conductivity 93 Btu/hr/sq ft/F/in. .032 cal/sec/sq cm/C/cm
(see Figure 8)
Curie Temperature 530 F 277 C
Melting Point 2600 F 1427 C


Atmospheric Test Corrosion Rate
Exposures Duration mils per year mm/yr
Industrial 10 years 0.7 .02
Marine up to 5 years 0.1-0.3 .003-.008

Localized Corrosion Phenomena

Stress Corrosion

Test Apparent Crack Progression
Exposure Test Duration mils per year mm/yr
Marine Atmosphere U-Bend up to 4 years 3-11 .08-0.28
Kure Beach, N.C.

Pitting
Exposure Result
Immersion in flowing 2 fps Sheet material perforates rapidly:
(0.6 m/sec) sea water at .019 in. (0.5 mm)within 16 days
ambient temperature .060 in. (1.5 mm)within 49 days


7
TABLE VI
Thermal Expansion Data
on 36 Per Cent Nickel-Iron Alloy
Temperature Range
Mean Coefficient of
Linear Expansion
F C perF perC
-400 to 0 -240 to -18 1.20 x 10
-6
2.16 x 10
-6
-200 to 0 -129 to -18 1.10 x 10
-6
1.98 x 10
-6
0 to 200 - 18 to 93 0.70 x 10
-6
1.26 x 10
-6
200 to 400 93 to 204 1.50 x 10
-6
2.70 x 10
-6
400 to 600 204 to 316 6.40 x 10
-6
11.52 x 10
-6

Fi gur e 7. Ef f ect of t emper at ur e on t he Modul us of Ri gi di t y of 36%
Ni - Fe al l oy.
REFERENCES
1. Lement , B. S. , Averbach, B. L. and Cohen, M. , The Di mensi onal Behavi or of I nvar,
Trans. ASM 43, 1951, pp. 1072-1097.
2. Mechani cal and Physi cal Proper t i es of I nvar and I nvar Type Al l oys, DMI C Mem-
orandum 207, August 31, 1965, Def ense Met al s I nf ormat i on Cent er, Bat t el l e Memori al
I nst i t ut e, Col umbus, Ohi o.
3. I nvar M 63 Low Expansi on Cryogeni c Al l oy, Creusot - Loi r e Mt al i mphy, Par i s,
France.
4. Wi t her el l , C. E. , Wel di ng Ni ckel -I r on Al l oys of t he I nvar Type, Wel di ng J. Resear ch
Suppl ement , 43, 1964, pp. 161- s- 169- s.
5. Got t l ei b, T. and Shi ra, C. S. , Fabr i cat i on of I r on- Ni ckel Al l oys f or Cryogeni c Pi pi ng
Ser vi ce, Wel di ng J. Resear ch Suppl ement , 44, 1965, pp. 116- s- 123- s.
6. Bel l war e, M. D. , How t o Wel d I nvar , Wel di ng Engi neer , 49, No. 11, 1964, pp. 41- 43.
7. Hunt er , M. A. , Low Expansi on Al l oys, Met al s Handbook, 8t h Edi t i on, Vol . 1, Amer i -
can Soci et y f or Met al s, Met al s Par k, Ohi o, 1971.
8. I ron-Ni ckel and Rel at ed Al l oys of t he I nvar and El i nvar Types, The I nt ernat i onal
Ni ckel Company, I nc.
Fi gur e 6. Ef f ect of t emper at ur e on t he Modul us of El ast i ci t y of 36%
Ni - Fe al l oy. Fi gur e 8. The ef f ect of t emper at ur e on t he Ther mal Conduct i vi t y of
36% Ni - Fe al l oy.




FOR MORE INFORMATION. .
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