EP0569239A1 - Amélioration esthétique de la surface d'articles en métaux non-ferreux - Google Patents

Amélioration esthétique de la surface d'articles en métaux non-ferreux Download PDF

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Publication number
EP0569239A1
EP0569239A1 EP93303519A EP93303519A EP0569239A1 EP 0569239 A1 EP0569239 A1 EP 0569239A1 EP 93303519 A EP93303519 A EP 93303519A EP 93303519 A EP93303519 A EP 93303519A EP 0569239 A1 EP0569239 A1 EP 0569239A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
phase
martensitic
article
polished
transformation
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Ceased
Application number
EP93303519A
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
Inventor
Ira Mervyn Wolff
Michael Bernard Cortie
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Mintek
Original Assignee
Mintek
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Priority claimed from ZA932674A external-priority patent/ZA932674B/xx
Application filed by Mintek filed Critical Mintek
Publication of EP0569239A1 publication Critical patent/EP0569239A1/fr
Ceased legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A44—HABERDASHERY; JEWELLERY
    • A44C—PERSONAL ADORNMENTS, e.g. JEWELLERY; COINS
    • A44C27/00—Making jewellery or other personal adornments
    • A44C27/001—Materials for manufacturing jewellery
    • A44C27/002—Metallic materials
    • A44C27/003—Metallic alloys
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B44—DECORATIVE ARTS
    • B44C—PRODUCING DECORATIVE EFFECTS; MOSAICS; TARSIA WORK; PAPERHANGING
    • B44C1/00—Processes, not specifically provided for elsewhere, for producing decorative surface effects
    • B44C1/005—Processes, not specifically provided for elsewhere, for producing decorative surface effects by altering locally the surface material
    • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
    • C22F—CHANGING THE PHYSICAL STRUCTURE OF NON-FERROUS METALS AND NON-FERROUS ALLOYS
    • C22F1/00—Changing the physical structure of non-ferrous metals or alloys by heat treatment or by hot or cold working
    • C22F1/08—Changing the physical structure of non-ferrous metals or alloys by heat treatment or by hot or cold working of copper or alloys based thereon
    • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
    • C22F—CHANGING THE PHYSICAL STRUCTURE OF NON-FERROUS METALS AND NON-FERROUS ALLOYS
    • C22F1/00—Changing the physical structure of non-ferrous metals or alloys by heat treatment or by hot or cold working
    • C22F1/14—Changing the physical structure of non-ferrous metals or alloys by heat treatment or by hot or cold working of noble metals or alloys based thereon

Definitions

  • THIS INVENTION relates to the aesthetic enhancement of the surface of articles or components thereof made of non-ferrous metals and, more particularly, non-ferrous metals the composition of which is chosen to exhibit a martensitic phase transformation on the application of suitable thermal treatment to the article or component.
  • non-ferrous metals the composition of which is chosen to exhibit a martensitic phase transformation on the application of suitable thermal treatment to the article or component.
  • alloys with which this invention is concerned are numerous alloys based on different metals such as copper, and more particularly, and more importantly, gold, silver and the platinum group metals.
  • the invention is concerned with modifying the surface appearance of such articles as items of jewellery, coinage, ornaments, and any other articles having an aesthetic appeal.
  • Non-ferrous metal articles in particular items of jewellery, coins, ornaments and the like, and more particularly such articles made of precious metals such as gold, platinum and silver, have surfaces, or components with surfaces, which are either highly polished, frosted, or provided with physical relief patterns applied by stamping, forging, moulding, or engraving.
  • the processes whereby ornamentation or aesthetic appeal may be applied to the surface of such articles is therefore limited and it is considered that it would be highly desirable to provide an alternative to these well known basic surface finishes.
  • the object of this invention to provide articles or components thereof made of non-ferrous alloys, in particular but not exclusively, precious metal alloys, which have a novel and aesthetically pleasing surface appearance.
  • a method of producing an article, or a component thereof, wherein the article is made of a non-ferrous alloy having a composition chosen to exhibit martensitic phase transformations between a parent phase and a martensitic phase comprising the steps of producing the article or component, polishing all or a required part of the surface thereof, and subsequently heat treating the article or component to cause a martensitic phase transformation to occur at least at said polished surface to cause a visible surface effect to be created.
  • the article may be produced, and initially polished, in the parent phase, followed by heat treatment to effect phase conversion to the martensitic phase of at least the polished surface.
  • the surface may be polished in the martensitic phase followed by heat treatment to transform the alloy back to the parent phase to produce a reverse surface effect.
  • the alloy to be based on copper, gold, silver or the platinum group metals; for the thermal treatment to be effected by heating the article or component to a temperature within the parent phase field on the equilibrium phase diagram followed by rapid cooling to below the martensite start transformation temperature, and, if required, by additional refrigeration treatment such as by immersing the article or component in liquid nitrogen; in the case where the alloy oxidises at elevated temperature, for the surface to be polished or buffed at a temperature intermediate the high and low temperatures of the thermal treatment; and, if required, to develop more ductility, for the article or component to be heat treated at a temperature outside the beta phase field prior to working or forming, and then inducing the martensitic phase change.
  • a further feature of the invention allows certain alloys to be thermally treated or aged to prevent the martensitic transformation.
  • a further feature of the invention allows the martensitic phase, or parent phase, as may be required, to be stabilised by ageing for prolonged periods.
  • a further feature of the invention allows the intrinsic colour of certain alloys to be modified, and more particularly, allows certain alloys based on gold to be produced exhibiting a range of colours. Still more particularly, the intrinsic colour of alloys of at least 18 carats based on the gold-copper-aluminium system, can be modified from yellow, through red through purple through white, by varying the aluminium content.
  • Still further features of the invention provide for ternary or higher alloy additions to be embodied in the non-ferrous metal alloy to thereby modify the mechanical properties, the colour, or the temperature range over which the martensitic transformation occurs, or a combination of these aspects; for the coarseness of the resultant surface effect of the martensitic phase change to be refined by either inoculations of the melt, or suitable thermo-mechanical processing of the compound prior to the thermal treatment to produce the martensitic phase change; and for additional colour effect or the prominence of the surface effect to be enhanced by chemical or electrolytic etching of the surface, or by reaction of the surface with, or diffusion into the surface of, or deposition on, the surface of chemically reactive species and / or coatings.
  • the modified surface or as it may be termed "spangle" produced in consequence of the martensitic phase change, can be removed by mechanical polishing, buffing or even by re-heat-treating the article or component and cooling at a rate slow enough to allow diffusion in cases where shape memory properties exist.
  • a relatively small number of metallic alloys exhibit the phenomenon known as martensitic phase transformation.
  • a martensitic phase transformation may be considered to be a displacive solid state transformation, without diffusion, and consisting of a change in the crystallographic structure.
  • the martensite phase appears as packets of lenticular laths, plates, or twins.
  • the martensitic transformation in non-ferrous alloys can also give rise to several associated effects such as thermo-elasticity, pseudo-elasticity, electric resistivity anomalies, damping, rubber-like behaviour, and the one or two-way shape memory effect.
  • a typical phase diagram is illustrated in Fig. 2.
  • a summary of some of the binary alloys in this group that may be expected to exhibit a martensitic phase transformation is shown schematically in the abbreviated periodic table in Fig. 1.
  • the elements in the bold frames represent the base elements in association with which the adjoining elements may be expected to yield the required transformation characteristics.
  • Various other precious metal and ternary compounds have also been identified in the literature as exhibiting martensitic transformations.
  • a variety of compounds have been made, for example, by vacuum arc or vacuum induction melting, or melting in sealed quartz containers.
  • the compositions have been selected to vary the martensite transformation temperature, and the compounds have been heat treated to exhibit the martensitic transformation.
  • Some of the compounds have been shown to be workable, for example by wire-rolling, or cold or hot rolling.
  • selected artifacts have been fabricated to illustrate the application of the martensitic transformation for decorative purposes.
  • the surface effect is not only produced when a parent phase is transformed to the martensitic phase but also in the opposite transformation.
  • the surface, or part thereof, may be polished when the alloy is in the martensitic phase and then heat treated to restore the parent phase. This will, similarly, give a surface effect giving an aesthetically pleasing appearance.

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  • Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Materials Engineering (AREA)
  • Manufacturing & Machinery (AREA)
  • Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
  • Thermal Sciences (AREA)
  • Crystallography & Structural Chemistry (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Metallurgy (AREA)
  • Organic Chemistry (AREA)
  • Adornments (AREA)
EP93303519A 1992-05-06 1993-05-06 Amélioration esthétique de la surface d'articles en métaux non-ferreux Ceased EP0569239A1 (fr)

Applications Claiming Priority (4)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
ZA923276 1992-05-06
ZA923276 1992-05-06
ZA932674 1993-04-16
ZA932674A ZA932674B (en) 1992-05-06 1993-04-16 The aesthetic enhancement or modification of articles or components made of non-ferrous metals.

Publications (1)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP0569239A1 true EP0569239A1 (fr) 1993-11-10

Family

ID=27142164

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP93303519A Ceased EP0569239A1 (fr) 1992-05-06 1993-05-06 Amélioration esthétique de la surface d'articles en métaux non-ferreux

Country Status (2)

Country Link
EP (1) EP0569239A1 (fr)
JP (1) JPH0625810A (fr)

Families Citing this family (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
JP2014058711A (ja) * 2012-09-14 2014-04-03 National Institute For Materials Science ＴｉＰｔ系高温形状記憶合金及びその製造方法

Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3141799A (en) * 1958-08-27 1964-07-21 Brellier Edmond Heat treatment of gold alloys
US5104457A (en) * 1988-02-23 1992-04-14 Country Club Golf Equipment (Proprietary) Limited Golf clubs and method of making thereof

Patent Citations (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3141799A (en) * 1958-08-27 1964-07-21 Brellier Edmond Heat treatment of gold alloys
US5104457A (en) * 1988-02-23 1992-04-14 Country Club Golf Equipment (Proprietary) Limited Golf clubs and method of making thereof

Non-Patent Citations (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Title
Derwent Publications Ltd., London, GB; AN 85-181602 & JP-A-60 110 855 (TOSHIBA KK) 17 June 1985 *
Derwent Publications Ltd., London, GB; AN 86-086023 & JP-A-61 034 164 (TOSHIBA KK) 18 February 1986 *
PATENT ABSTRACTS OF JAPAN vol. 007, no. 135 11 June 1983 & JP-A-58 048 649 ( CHIYOUBEE TAGUCHI ) 22 March 1983 *

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
JPH0625810A (ja) 1994-02-01

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