Shapal Hi M Soft™ – Machinable Aluminum Nitride (AlN)

Shapal Hi M Soft and Macor glass ceramic are often compared because they both are machinable ceramics, however, both of these materials have significantly different mechanical and thermal properties. The following are som factors to consider when choosing between Macor and Shapal.

Thermal Conductivity

Shapal Hi M is a thermal conductor at 90 W/(m K), Macor is a thermal insulator with a thermal conductivity of 1.46 W/(m K)

Thermal Cycle

Shapal is not prone to suffering from thermal shock failures while Macor is vulnerable to thermal shock – if the parts have rapid heat up and cool down cycles then Shapal is a better option.

Maximum Temperature

Shapal has a much higher maximum use temperature of 1900C (in an inert atmosphere) and 1000C (in air).

Strength

Shapal offers better bending strength (300 vs 94 MPa) as well as better compressive strength ( 1200 vs 345 MPa) when compared with Macor.

Cost

Macor is a cheaper material that Shapal Hi M Soft, if it can be used instead of Shapal the user will typically see significant cost reductions.

Shapal Hi M Soft™ is a hybrid type of machinable Aluminum Nitride ceramic that offers high mechanical strength and thermal conductivity. By combining Aluminum Nitride with Boron Nitride, Tokuyama has created a ceramic that is easily machined into complex shapes while still keeping many of the advantages of traditional Aluminum Nitride. It features excellent machinability, high thermal conductivity and excellent mechanical strength which makes it suitable for a broad range applications. Some other benefits of Shapal include:

• Can be machined by a broad range of methods such as drilling, turning, milling to form complex shapes with high precision
• Excellent sealing ability to vacuum
• Approximately five times as much thermal conductivity as that of alumina (Aluminium Oxide)
• High mechanical strength & bending strength of 30kg/mm² is comparable to that of Alumina
• Excellent electric insulation
• Low thermal expansion
• Low dielectric loss

Shapal Hi M Soft™ is a hybrid type of machinable Aluminum Nitride ceramic that offers high mechanical strength and thermal conductivity. It features excellent machinability, high thermal conductivity and excellent mechanical strength which makes it suitable for a broad range applications, such as the following:

• Electronic components where electrical insulation and heat dissipation are required
• Components where low dielectric constant and dissipation factor are required
• Fixture parts where a low coefficient of thermal expansion is required
• Vacuum components
• Components where a low coefficient of thermal expansion required
• Heat sinks
• Crucibles for vacuum deposition
• Special refractory parts such as protective tubes

Pure Aluminum Nitride is often the material of choice for high thermal conductivity applications, however, because it is such a hard material it is often costly to produce in small quantities or non-standard sizes. Shapal Hi M Soft is a machinable Aluminum Nitride/Boron Nitride composite material that can be machined into incredibly tight tolerances and complicated shapes while still providing excellent thermal conductivity.

We have recently been able to increase the maximum size availability of Shapal to 300mm x 300mm x 64mm. We carry many standard sizes of Shapal in stock and can supply fully machined components or non-standard sizes on request.

Shapal can be used at temperatures up to 1,900°C in an inert atmosphere and up to 1,000°C in an oxidizing atmosphere. Click Here for further information about Shapal’s material properties.