Sheffield Forgemasters announced the successful conclusion of casting trials of a 160-ton hollow steel ingot that could help the company capitalize on key power-generation sectors, including nuclear energy.

Sheffield Forgemasters (U.K.) announced the successful conclusion of casting trials of a 160-ton hollow steel ingot that could help the company capitalize on key power-generation sectors, including nuclear energy. The ingot was cast at the company's Brightside Lane foundry in Sheffield. The production of this large hollow ingot could enable the company to make highly efficient cylindrical forgings by removing many of the costly time- and energy-intensive processes required to create a tubular-shaped forging from a solid steel ingot.

According to Sheffield Forgemasters, casting the hollow ingot took more than 12 months of investment by its research and development facility to refine a practice that can be adopted by only a select few companies worldwide. Hollow ingots will enable Forgemasters to produce cylindrical forgings, which are used for components including transition cones used in civil nuclear-power steam generators and waste casks for used nuclear fuel.