Aluminum wheels include a rim and a disc having a mounting portion. The mounting portion includes an inner mounting face and an outer mounting face. The mounting portion also includes a coarse grain region and a fine grain region. The coarse grain region can be adjacent, and at least partially form, one of the inner mounting face or the outer mounting face. The coarse grain region includes aluminum alloy grains of a first average grain length that is greater than 1 mm. The fine grain region extends between the coarse grain region and the other of the inner mounting face or the outer mounting face. The fine grain region includes aluminum alloy grains of a second average grain length that is less than 0.5 mm.

Aluminum alloys described herein include silicon, iron, copper, manganese, magnesium, and chromium. In various implementations, the aluminum alloys also include one or more of zinc and titanium. Typically, a total amount of iron and manganese in the aluminum alloys is no less than 0.28% by weight and no greater than 0.45% by weight, and the grains in the aluminum alloys have an average grain length of no greater than 6 mm. Aluminum alloy billets can be forged for wheel production at selected temperatures.

A method, in accordance with one embodiment, includes forming an array of structures from a raw material via cold spray. Each of the structures is characterized by having a defined feature size in at least one dimension of less than 100 microns as measured in a plane of deposition of the structure, at least 90% of a theoretical density of the raw material, and essentially the same functional properties as the raw material. A method, in accordance with another embodiment, includes positioning a mask between a cold spray nozzle and a substrate, and forming a structure on the substrate by cold spraying a raw material from the cold spray nozzle. The structure has a shape corresponding to an aperture in the mask.

Turbocharger turbine wheels including nickel-based alloys are disclosed herein. In one exemplary embodiment, a turbocharger turbine wheel includes as, at least part of its constituency, a nickel-based alloy that includes, on a weight basis of the overall alloy: about 10.5% to about 11.5% cobalt, about 9.0% to about 10.0% chromium, about 5.75% to about 6.25% aluminum, about 2.8% to about 3.3% tantalum, about 4.0% to about 4.5% molybdenum, about 2.2% to about 2.4% titanium, about 0.13% to about 0.15% carbon, about 0.03 to about 0.09% zirconium, and a majority of nickel. The nickel-based alloy excludes tungsten except in unavoidable trace amounts. The turbocharger turbine wheel may be configured for operating at about 980 C. to about 1020 C.

A softening resistant copper alloy, a preparation method, and an application thereof, the softening-resistant copper alloy, comprising 0.1%-1.0 wt % Cr, 0.01%-0.2 wt % Zr, 0.01%-0.10 wt % Si, and 0.10 wt % Fe, and with the remaining of copper and inevitable impurities, wherein the microstructure of the copper alloy contains comprises: an elemental Cr phase, a Cu.sub.5Zr phase, and a Cr.sub.3Si phase. In the copper alloy of the present invention, the high-temperature softening resistance effect of the material is improved by adding a proper amount of Si to form a compound Cr.sub.3Si, and the strength and the high-temperature softening resistance of the material are further improved by strengthening the copper alloy matrix by the elemental Cr phase and the Cu.sub.5Zr phase, using the synergistic effect of the Cr.sub.3Si phase and the elemental Cr phase and by controlling the content of the impurity Fe. The copper alloy can be applied to contact lines and welding materials to prolong the service life of the materials.

Any metal having a low ?-ray emission, the metal being any one of tin, silver, copper, zinc, or indium, wherein an emission of an ?-ray after heating the metal at 100? C. in an atmosphere for six hours is 0.002 cph/cm.sup.2 or less. Any metal of tin, silver, copper, zinc and indium each including lead as an impurity is dissolved to prepare a hydrosulfate aqueous solution of the metal and lead sulfate is precipitated and removed in the solution. The lead sulfate is precipitated in the hydrosulfate aqueous solution by adding a lead nitrate aqueous solution including lead having an ?-ray emission of 10 cph/cm.sup.2 or less to the hydrosulfate aqueous solution, from which the lead sulfate has been removed, and, at the same time, the solution is circulated while removing the lead sulfate to electrowinning the metal using the hydrosulfate aqueous solution as an electrolytic solution.

Provided is high purity tin having purity of 5N (99.999% by mass), which can suppress generation of particles. According to the high purity tin, the number of particles each having a particle diameter of 0.5 m or more is 50,000 or less per a gram.

In a differential scanning calorimetric curve of an AlMgSi aluminum alloy sheet with a specific composition in which the total content of Mg and Si is greater than 1.2%, a ratio (B/A) of an endothermic peak within the temperature range of 150-230 C. with a height A of 3-10 W/mg to an exothermic peak within the temperature range of 230 C. or above and below 330 C. with a height B of 20-50 W/mg is to be within a specified range.

A copper alloy sheet material that is excellent in surface smoothness of an etched surface has a composition containing, (mass %), from 1.0 to 4.5% of Ni, from 0.1 to 1.2% of Si, from 0 to 0.3% of Mg, from 0 to 0.2% of Cr, from 0 to 2.0% of Co, from 0 to 0.1% of P, from 0 to 0.05% of B, from 0 to 0.2% of Mn, from 0 to 0.5% of Sn, from 0 to 0.5% of Ti, from 0 to 0.2% of Zr, from 0 to 0.2% of Al, from 0 to 0.3% of Fe, from 0 to 1.0% of Zn, the balance Cu and unavoidable impurities. A number density of coarse secondary phase particles has a major diameter of 1.0 m or more of 4.010.sup.3 per square millimeter or less. KAM value measured with a step size of 0.5 m is more than 3.00.

A method for thermally treating a flat steel product, a thermally treated flat steel product and use thereof. The method includes providing a flat steel product with a structure with a first hardness. The flat product is heated at least in sections to an austenitizing temperature. The heated flat product is cooled at least in sections so that a structure with a second hardness is formed within the flat product at least in sections, the second hardness having a higher level of hardness in comparison to the structure with the first hardness. The heating and the cooling down of the flat product are coordinated with each other such that the structure with the second hardness is formed across the thickness of the flat product and at least in one of said sections, the structure with the first hardness remains constant across the thickness of the flat product.