Use of aluminum nitride in melting a V-Al-N master alloy

The possibility to use aluminum nitride as a nitriding agent for out-of-furnace aluminothermic melting of V-Al-N master alloys is studied and tested. It has been found that the replacement of nitrided vanadium by aluminum nitride in a charge for melting does not change the phase composition of the master alloy and the uniformity of the distribution of nitride inclusions in the ingot volume. The nitrogen-containing phase of the V-Al-N master alloy is represented by aluminum nitride. The mean values of the structural parameters of the master alloys melted from charges containing nitrided vanadium or aluminum nitride are identical.