Glossary

Vacuum Annealing

Vacuum is best characterized as a lack of atmosphere (i.e. air, oxygen or other gases). Hence when metals or alloys are heated to high temperatures in a vacuum furnace, there is essentially no oxygen present to oxidize and discolor the surface of the material. Unfortunately, vacuum annealing is not condusive to strand annealing (i.e. uncoiling, heating and recoiling). Titanium rolled at Ulbrich is annealed in coil form in vacuum furnaces by outside heat treaters.

Vacuum Refining

Melting in vacuum, usually by electrical induction, to remove gaseous contaminants from the metal or alloy. CEVM, VAR and VIM are terms relating to this process.

Vickers Hardness (Test)

Standard method for measuring the hardness of metals, particularly those with extremely hard surfaces; the surface is subjected to a standard pressure for a standard length of time by means of a pyramid shaped diamond. The diagonal of the resulting indention is measured under a microscope and the Vickers Hardness value read from a conversion table.