Meehanite
Encyclopedia
Meehanite is a trademark
for an engineering process to make many types of cast iron
. When a foundry advertises that produces "Meehanite Iron" this means the foundry is licensed by Meehanite Metal Corporation, initially of Chattanooga, Tennessee
but now based in Mequon, Wisconsin
. The Meehanite process includes a series of specific processing steps, which, when followed, will produce (according to Meehanite) cast iron with uniform soundness, consistent physical properties and dependable performance in service http://www.meehanitemetal.com/htmlpages/whats_diff.html.
Meehanite metal specifications include a wide range of cast irons, including flake graphite types, ductile iron
s, austempered
ductile irons, wear resistant irons, heat resistant irons and corrosion resistant types. Meehanite is not a specific alloy or material. While Meehanite lists all of these metal types in its grouping of specifications, all of these types of cast irons can and are made by non-Meehanite licensed foundries. Many of the types of engineering grades listed by Meehanite were discovered or developed by other companies.
Castings made by this method are used for example, to make machine tools and other types of castings. Some Meehanite alloys are designed for high corrosion resistance.
into the melt to improve the mechanical and physical properties.
The Meehanite Metal Corporation has a number of other patents on machinery for adding the inoculant agents to melts of iron in a controlled manner.
Trademark
A trademark, trade mark, or trade-mark is a distinctive sign or indicator used by an individual, business organization, or other legal entity to identify that the products or services to consumers with which the trademark appears originate from a unique source, and to distinguish its products or...
for an engineering process to make many types of cast iron
Cast iron
Cast iron is derived from pig iron, and while it usually refers to gray iron, it also identifies a large group of ferrous alloys which solidify with a eutectic. The color of a fractured surface can be used to identify an alloy. White cast iron is named after its white surface when fractured, due...
. When a foundry advertises that produces "Meehanite Iron" this means the foundry is licensed by Meehanite Metal Corporation, initially of Chattanooga, Tennessee
Chattanooga, Tennessee
Chattanooga is the fourth-largest city in the US state of Tennessee , with a population of 169,887. It is the seat of Hamilton County...
but now based in Mequon, Wisconsin
Mequon, Wisconsin
Mequon is a city in Ozaukee County, Wisconsin, United States. It had a population of 21,823 at the 2000 census, and an estimated population of 23,739 in July 2009...
. The Meehanite process includes a series of specific processing steps, which, when followed, will produce (according to Meehanite) cast iron with uniform soundness, consistent physical properties and dependable performance in service http://www.meehanitemetal.com/htmlpages/whats_diff.html.
Meehanite metal specifications include a wide range of cast irons, including flake graphite types, ductile iron
Ductile iron
Ductile iron, also known as ductile cast iron, nodular cast iron, spheroidal graphite iron, spherulitic graphite cast iron and SG iron, is a type of cast iron invented in 1943 by Keith Millis...
s, austempered
Austempering
Austempering is an isothermal heat treatment that is applied to ferrous metals, most notably steel and ductile iron. In steel it produces a lower bainite microstructure whereas in cast irons it produces a structure of acicular ferrite and high carbon, stabilized austenite known as ausferrite. It is...
ductile irons, wear resistant irons, heat resistant irons and corrosion resistant types. Meehanite is not a specific alloy or material. While Meehanite lists all of these metal types in its grouping of specifications, all of these types of cast irons can and are made by non-Meehanite licensed foundries. Many of the types of engineering grades listed by Meehanite were discovered or developed by other companies.
Castings made by this method are used for example, to make machine tools and other types of castings. Some Meehanite alloys are designed for high corrosion resistance.
History
The Meehanite process was developed by Meehan and Smalley in the early 1920s. It was originally based on introducing calcium silicideCalcium silicide
Calcium silicide , also called calcium disilicide, is an inorganic compound, a silicide of calcium. It is a whitish or dark grey to black solid matter with melting point 1033°C. It is insoluble in water, but may decompose when subjected to moisture, evolving hydrogen and producing calcium...
into the melt to improve the mechanical and physical properties.
Relevant patents
, issued to Augustus F. Meehan in January 1931, is the initial patent on the process. This patent concerned a technique to make 'grey iron castings' (Note: this is the spelling exactly as it appears in the patent).The Meehanite Metal Corporation has a number of other patents on machinery for adding the inoculant agents to melts of iron in a controlled manner.