Platinum metal fabrication

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR UNITING FAYING PORTIONS OF AT LEAST ONE COMPONENT OF PLATINUM METAL SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF PLATINUM, DISPERSION-HARDENED PLATINUM, PLATINUM-BASE ALLOYS AND DISPERSION-HARDENED PLATINUMBASE ALLOYS, SAID PLATINUM-BASE ALLOYS AND SAID DISPERSIONHARDENED PLATINUM-BASE ALLOYS CONTAINING AT LEAST ONE METAL FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF UP TO ABOUT 40% IRIDIUM, UP TO ABOUT 5% OSMIUM, UP TO ABOUT 50% PALLADIUM, UP TO ABOUT 40% RHODIUM, AND UP TO ABOUT 15% RUTHENIUM WITH THE BALANCE ESSENTIALLY PLATINUM IN AMOUNTS GREATER THAN ABOUT 50% TO PRODUCE A STRUCTURE SUITABLE FOR SERVICE AT TEMPERATURES OF 11450*C. AND HIGHER WHICH COMPRISES PLACING THE FAYING PORTIONS IN MUTUAL CONTACT WITH A BRAZING ALLOY, SAID BRAZING ALLOY BEING AN ESSENTIALLY BINARY ALLOY OF APLLADIUM AND A METAL SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF GOLD IN AN AMOUNT ABOUT 0% TO ABOUT 100% AND COPPER IN AN AMOUNT ABOUT 0% TO ABOUT 100%, WITH THE FAYING PORTIONS OF THE COMPONENT BEING ABOUT 0.0005 INCH TO ABOUT 0.01 INCH APART, SUBJECTING THE BRAZING ALLOY AND AT LEAST THE FAYING PORTIONS OF THE COMPONENTS TO A TEMPERATURE THAT EXCEEDS THE MELTING POINT OF THE BRAZING ALLOY BY AT LEAST ABOUT 100* C. AND IS SUBSTANTIALLY BELOW THE MELTING POINT OF THE PLATINUM METAL OF THE FAYING PORTIONS TO METL THE BRAZING ALLOY AND MAINTAINING THE FAYING PORTIONS AT A TEMPERATURE THAT EXCEEDS THE TEMPERATURE OF BRAZING ALLOY BY AT LEAST ABOUT 100*C. AND IS SUBSTANTIALLY LOWER THAN THE MELTING POINT OF THE PLATINUM METAL OF THE FAYING PORTIONS FOR A PERIOD FROM ABOUT 0.5 MINUTE TO ABOUT 150 MINUTES TO DIFFUSE PLATINUM METAL OF THE COMPONENT WHOLLY INTO THE BRAZING ALLOY AND RAISE THE MELTING POINT OF THE BRAZING ALLOY TO A TEMPERATURE ABOVE ABOUT 1450* C. AND ABOVE THE TEMPERATURE TO WHICH THE STRUCTURE IS TO BE SUBJECTED IN SERVICE WHILE MAINTAINING THE RELATIVE POSITIONS OF THE FAYING PORTIONS.