Containerless processing of beryllium

Melting and solidification of a beryllium alloy containing 1.5% BeO by weight in the weightless environment of space has produced cast beryllium with a relatively uniform dispersion of BeO throughout. Examination of the cast material shows that it is coarse grained, although the BeO is not heavily agglomerated in the flight specimen. Ground based comparison experiments show extreme agglomeration and segregation of BeO, resulting in large zones which are practically free of the oxide. Several postulated hypotheses for the failure to grain refine the beryllium are formulated. These are: (1) spherodization of the BeO particles during specimen preparation and during the molten phase of the experiment; (2) loss of nucleation potency through aging in the molten phase; and (3) inability of BeO to act as a grain refiner for beryllium. Further investigation with non spherodized particles and shorter dwell times molten may delineate which of these hypotheses are valid. The results of this flight experiment indicate that the weightless environment of space is an important asset in conducting research to find grain refiners for beryllium and other metals for which cast dispersions of grain refining agents cannot be prepared terrestrially due to gravitationally driven settling and agglomeration.