Molybdenum metal downloads

This publication helps non-experts to learn how molybdenum metal is produced, what its physical, mechanical, and chemical properties are, and how those properties make molybdenum and its alloys the materials of choice in a wide range of applications.

This publication helps non-experts to learn how molybdenum metal is produced, what its physical, mechanical, and chemical properties are, and how those properties make molybdenum and its alloys the materials of choice in a wide range of applications.

Chinese version added 10/10/2020.

Solar power is an increasingly prevalent source of carbon-free, renewable energy generation. New thin-film photovoltaic panels offer significant advantages over traditional arrays in manufacturing, cost and design flexibility. Molybdenum provides several advantages as a component of the back electrode in CdTe cells, and as the sole material of the back electrode in CIGS technology.

As Artificial Intelligence (AI) reshapes everything from transportation to healthcare, it is also pushing semiconductors to their limits, demanding faster speeds, larger storage, and far greater energy efficiency. Meeting these demands requires a generational shift in chip design, one that challenges the boundaries of materials science. Molybdenum is at the heart of this transformation.

For centuries, molybdenum was confused with lead and graphite until scientists finally isolated the element in 1781. It came into commercial use during World War I as a steel hardening agent. In the century that followed, hundreds of uses and functions of molybdenum have been uncovered, from corrosion resistance in stainless steels to an essential role in human health.

Imagine hiking through a remote wilderness, using a lightweight, bendable solar panel on a backpack to charge your phone. Or imagine aircraft that use sunlight to reduce reliance on fuel. The lightweight technology that makes this possible, known as a copper-indium-gallium-selenide (CIGS) thin-film, is pushing solar energy into places conventional silicon cannot reach. CIGS relies on a micrometer-thin layer of molybdenum, applied with atomic precision, that enables performance in the harshest conditions, from disaster zones to deep space.

Molybdenum metal is indispensable to several industries because of its strength at high temperatures. But some applications require complex and not so-easily-fabricated shapes. 3D printing is one approach to overcoming production issues with complicated parts, however, when produced in molybdenum metal, such parts often suffer from defects. A new process, alloying it with titanium carbide, may indicate a turning point.

Improving the safety and efficiency of technologies and minimizing their environmental impact often depends directly on the development of better materials. Hot isostatic pressing (HIP) technology has been at the forefront of this area for decades. Recent advances improve the productivity of making HIPed parts and reduce their cost. Molybdenum metal components are crucial to HIP furnace performance.

Molybdenum-based alloys containing rhenium have been used primarily for high-temperature applications. However, the traditional “Mo-50 Re” alloy has now been clinically evaluated for a cardiovascular stent and is certified for this application. Furthermore, an ASTM standard covering its use in implants has been published recently. The alloy’s high strength, excellent toughness, ductility and biocompatibility make MoRe® an excellent alternative to traditional implant materials.

Metalworking tools must survive high temperatures, extreme stresses, friction and wear, and still economically produce precision parts from difficult-to-process alloys. In some applications, traditional steel and nickel- alloy tools cannot do the job. Molybdenum metal alloys like TZM and MHC solve this problem, saving material and processing costs, and enabling new and better technologies.

Climbing a vertical wall, finding the next crack or jut in the rock face, pushing higher with nothing but the body’s strength, are part of the thrill of rock climbing. However, without the aid of safety anchors to catch the climber in the event of a mishap, the sport could be deadly. Both experience and study indicate that molybdenum-alloyed stainless steel anchors play an increasingly important role to protect climbers’ lives.

LEDs are revolutionizing lighting technology. They are more sustainable than traditional lighting sources because they use much less energy and last much longer. At the same time, lighting can be used in completely new ways. Molybdenum plays a key role in making the sapphire substrate of LED devices and is also important as a heat sink in these lights.

Molybdenum plays an important role in the performance of piston rings used in combustion engines. Applied as a plasma-sprayed coating, it delivers good wear resistance and better overall performance than materials used in the past.

Molybdenum heat sinks are essential to power semiconductor devices that manage the flow of electricity in electronic equipment because they prevent overheating. Molybdenum’s good thermal and electrical conductivity, combined with its low coefficient of thermal expansion, make it the ideal material for this application.

A recent study found that about one quarter of the molybdenum used each year is recycled material from scrap sources. The rest is newly mined, primary molybdenum. Scrap therefore plays an important role in meeting demand and contributing to sustainability.

We prize glass because of its clarity and beauty, and also for its immense versatility. Molybdenum components help to make the glass and glass products used every day. Moly’s high strength at the high glass melting temperature and its resistance to corrosion by molten glass make it the ideal material for this purpose.