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2025 Vol.35, Issue 12 Preview Page

Special Issue KIMS - Review

Development Trends of Single-Crystal Superalloys for Gas Turbines and the Current Status of Domestic Re-Free Alloy Development

가스터빈용 단결정 초내열합금 개발 동향과 국산 Re-free 단결정 초내열합금 개발 현황

Jeonghyeon Do1†
,
Sangwon Lee1
,
Joong Eun Jung1
,
In Soo Kim1
,
Baig-Gyu Choi1
도 정현1†
,
이 상원1
,
정 중은1
,
김 인수1
,
최 백규1
1Aerospace Materials Research Center, Korea Institute of Materials Science, Changwon 51508, Republic of Korea
1한국재료연구원 항공우주재료연구센터
†Corresponding author E-Mail : jhdo84@kims.re.kr (J. Do, KIMS)
27 December 2025. pp. 647-655
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Abstract

As science and technology advance, the demand for materials capable of withstanding extreme environments has steadily been increasing. Among them, structural materials that can operate reliably at high temperatures remain a critical field of development. Single-crystal nickel-based superalloys are among the most advanced metallic materials, capable of sustaining stresses at the highest operating temperatures, and are widely used for gas turbine blades. Since the efficiency of a gas turbine increases with higher turbine inlet temperature, the development of alloys capable of operating under such extreme conditions has been a continuing challenge. Significant progress has been achieved by adding refractory elements such as Re and Ru, leading to superalloy generations classified according to their content. While advanced countries initially led the development of 4th and 5th generation alloys containing high amounts of Re and Ru, recent trends have emphasized cost competitiveness, by reducing these expensive elements while maintaining high-temperature performance. Alongside Western countries, China has also invested heavily in optimizing Re and Ru content for material self-reliance. For Korea, the local realization of single-crystal superalloys is essential not only for industrial gas turbines but also for defense-related jet engines. At the Korea Institute of Materials Science, extensive research has been carried out to develop alloys tailored to different conditions. Recently, a Re-free single-crystal superalloy was developed that exhibits superior creep resistance compared to conventional Re-containing alloys, even outperforming TMS-1700, the world-class Re-free alloy developed at NIMS, Japan. Optimization studies toward commercialization are ongoing, contributing to the national goal of self-reliance in extreme high-temperature materials.

Keywords
single crystal superalloy
gas turbine blade
high-temperature material
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Information
  • Publisher :Materials Research Society of Korea
  • Publisher(Ko) :한국재료학회
  • Journal Title :Korean Journal of Materials Research
  • Journal Title(Ko) :한국재료학회지
  • Volume : 35
  • No :12
  • Pages :647-655
  • Received Date : 2025-11-12
  • Revised Date : 2025-12-08
  • Accepted Date : 2025-12-10
  • DOI :https://doi.org/10.3740/MRSK.2025.35.12.647
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