cold welding

noun

1. the welding of metal objects by extreme high pressure or by contact in a high vacuum with no application of heat.

Example Sentences

Outside the space station, there are micro-meteoroid strikes, extreme temperature fluctuations, the cold welding of metal parts that occurs in a vacuum, and atomic oxygen/ultraviolet degradation.

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“Mechanisms such as filter wheels on telescopes or carousels that change instruments are very difficult to lubricate. Optical systems need to be kept clean and, in a vacuum, lubricants can be easily deposited on optical components and reduce their effectiveness. If you try to build mechanisms without lubricants, they have a tendency to stick through a process called ‘cold welding’: in a vacuum, smooth metal surfaces fuse when brought into contact.

Read more on Newsweek

Moreover, to the posts hung new wagon chains, and near by stood the village blacksmith and his apprentice, who carried a hand anvil and a sledge hammer for the cold welding of those chains.

Read more on Project Gutenberg