Scandium Canada Ltd. has provided an update on its Scandium+ division's efforts to advance industrial adoption of proprietary aluminum-scandium alloys. The company has commissioned the Centre de Metallurgie du Quebec to produce wires using two proprietary alloy formulations for welding and Wire Additive Advanced Manufacturing trials, with work expected to complete by March 2026 and prototypes submitted for third-party end-user testing.
This development is significant because it addresses a market segment that currently doesn't exist. The company estimates these applications alone could generate demand for up to 30 tonnes per year of scandium oxide, representing substantial potential growth for the scandium industry. For context, the company's Crater Lake Project is expected to produce 91 tonnes per year of scandium oxide. This work builds on findings from a Productique Quebec study announced in October 2025 and is supported by grants from the CQRDA (Centre Quebecois de recherche et developpement de l'aluminium), of which the company is a member.
Scandium Canada is collaborating with Gränges Powder Metallurgy, a wholly owned subsidiary of global aluminum technology company Gränges, to trial modified AA535 and AA7075 alloys in GPM's product offerings. GPM is a global supplier of sprayformed aluminum products and aluminum powders for additive manufacturing. Through Canada's Industrial Research Assistance Program, the company has received a technical report from the National Research Council of Canada's Additive Manufacturing Division to identify materials qualification strategies for space, aerospace, and defense applications including waveguides, antennas, small heat exchangers, and ballistic plating.
The company is expanding outreach to industrial end users across aerospace, automotive, advanced manufacturing and 3D printing sectors, building on a Productique Quebec report that identified 13 target applications including welding wires, aircraft ducting, and heat exchangers. Technical results reported in September 2025 showed the alloys offer a practical solution to eliminating micro-cracking in high-strength aluminum alloys during laser powder-bed fusion processing, with implications for aluminum welding and WAAM applications. Key attributes include reduced scandium content while maintaining grain-refining effect, broad processing window with relative densities above 99%, ultimate tensile strengths of approximately 330 to 380 MPa with 17–25% increases after heat treatment, and minimized defect density through proprietary blending procedures.
Scandium Canada's two proprietary alloys and their fabrication method, developed with McMaster University, are protected by an international patent application filed under the Patent Cooperation Treaty on September 17, 2025, building on an initial provisional patent application filed with the USPTO in September 2024. This intellectual property is wholly owned by Scandium Canada Ltd. and strategically positions the company for global commercial applications. Dr. Luc Duchesne, Head of Scandium+ division and Chief Science Officer, stated the company aims to find the shortest pathways for commercialization through co-development with industrial users and increased understanding of alloy properties. CEO Guy Bourassa noted that confirmation of commercial acceptance will support the financial model of a pre-feasibility study due in June 2026. For additional information, visit https://www.scandium-canada.com.
