Beryllium I-70H, Optical Grade

Subcategory: Pure Element; Nonferrous Metal; Beryllium Alloy

Key Words: Brush Wellman; I70H Alloys

Material Notes:
HIP'ed optical grade provides improved properties over standard grade for bare polished optics. Very low oxide content (0.5% max BeO). Brush Wellman produces this grade via controlling impact ground powder in a HIP process. HIP'ed I-70H has a typical microyield strength (stress required to produce one microinch of permanent strain) of 5 ksi (34.5 MPa).

Tensile data below for I-70H has been supplemented with other property data generally applicable to pure beryllium.

Please note that there are health hazards associated with beryllium, especially when present as airborne particles generated during processing. As with any material, be aware of hazards and take steps to reduce exposure to a safe level.

General beryllium information: Beryllium is one of the lightest metals and has a high strength-to-weight ratio, stiffness-to-weight ratio, and very high specific heat, thermal conductivity, and heat of fusion. It has significant ductility, is readily machined and can be rolled, drawn, or extruded. It finds applications in nuclear reactors (neutron moderator and reflector), X-ray sources/detectors (X-ray transparency), IR target acquisition systems, inertial guidance instruments, computer parts, other aircraft and satellite structures, and heat sink constraining cores. Beryllium is usually produced via a powder metallurgy process to improve machinability and mechanical properties.

Information provided by Brush Wellman and the references.