In searching for ways to improve power-to-weight ratios and fuel efficiency, gas turbine engine manufacturers invest heavily in the development and testing of new alloys. Their goal is to find turbine airfoil materials that can handle the higher operating temperatures, increased component stresses, and faster rotational speeds that are needed to increase turbine performance. Major turbine engine manufacturers find they can achieve these objectives through ultra-high performance, single-crystal superalloys - a group of nickel-base materials that exhibit outstanding strength and surface stability at temperatures up to 85 percent of their melting points. One such superalloy is CMSX-4, co-engineered by ingot maker Cannon-Muskegon and turbine engine manufacturers Rolls-Royce and Allison Engine Company. It is currently being used in such applications as Allison's advanced airfoil programs.
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