Abstract: Cold-hearth melt-spinning apparatus for adapted improved continuous casting of refractory and reactive alloys possesses (1) a cold crucible having a selectively grooved surface operative to reduce both melt "freezing" at the melt/crucible interface and input heating power requirements, and (2) a replaceable nozzle of a refractory material that is friction-fit in an aperture provided therefor in the crucible. The confronting nozzle/crucible walls define a thermally impeding interface which maintains the nozzle at a temperature sufficient to substantially eliminate melt "freezing" in and across the nozzle orifice. The melt is ejected as a molten jet from the crucible by pressure, rapidly quenched on a suitably configured spinning disk into either filaments or flakes, and passed to an environmentally protected processing compartment. Arc heating of the melt is provided by a water-cooled and selectively movable electrode.

Abstract: Small amounts of rare earth elements are added to an .alpha. or near-.alpha. alloy of titanium and IIIA, IVA metals to provide a rare earth/IIIA, IVA metal precipitate during an age hardening heat treatment after rapid solidification of the alloy. Age hardening of the rapidly solidified alloy of .alpha. or near .alpha.-titanium creates a fine, uniform, equidistant, high density, spherical 50-100 Angstrom precipitate of the resulting rare earth/IIIA, IVA metal compound to produce a precipitate-hardened allow with twice the strength of the alloy without rare earth additives. The precipitate hardening which predominates the other hardening processes occurs during the heat treating step after rapid solidification, with the quenching associated with the rapid solidification producing solid solution hardening.