Powder Metallurgy (P/M)

Competitive with processes such as casting, forging, and machining. Used when melting point is too high (W, Mo). reaction occurs at melting (Zr). too hard to machine. very large quantity. Near 70% of the P/M part production is for automotive applications. Good dimensional accuracy. Controllable porosity. Size range from tiny balls for ball-point pens to parts weighing 100 lb. Most are around 5 lb.
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Basic Steps In Powder Metallurgy

Powder Production Blending or Mixing Powder Consolidation Sintering Finishing

1. Powder Production
Many methods: extraction from compounds, deposition, atomization, fiber production, mechanical powder production, etc. Atomization is the dominant process

(a)

(b)

(c)
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(a) Water or gas atomization; (b) Centrifugal atomization; (c) Rotating electrode

Characterization of Powders

Size of powders 0.1 um 1 mm Sieve size quoted as mesh number Particle D = 15/mesh number (mm) 325 mesh 45 um

2. Blending or Mixing
Blending a coarser fraction with a finer fraction ensures that the interstices between large particles will be filled out. Powders of different metals and other materials may be mixed in order to impart special physical and mechanical properties through metallic alloying. Lubricants may be mixed to improve the powders flow characteristics. Binders such as wax or thermoplastic polymers are added to improve green strength. Sintering aids are added to accelerate densification on heating.

3. Powder Consolidation
Cold compaction with 100 900 MPa to produce a Green body.
Die pressing Cold isostatic pressing Rolling Gravity

Injection Molding small, complex parts.

Die pressing

Friction problem in cold compaction The effectiveness of pressing with a single-acting punch is

limited. Wall friction opposes compaction. The pressure tapers off rapidly and density diminishes away from the punch. Floating container and two counteracting punches help alleviate the problem.

W. Li

4. Sintering
Parts are heated to 0.7~0.9 Tm. Transforms compacted mechanical bonds to much stronger metallic bonds.

Shrinkage always occurs:

5. Finishing
The porosity of a fully sintered part is still significant (4-15%). Density is often kept intentionally low to preserve interconnected porosity for bearings, filters, acoustic barriers, and battery electrodes. However, to improve properties, finishing processes are needed: Cold restriking, resintering, and heat treatment. Impregnation of heated oil. Infiltration with metal (e.g., Cu for ferrous parts). Machining to tighter tolerance.

Special Process: Hot compaction

Advantages can be gained by combining consolidation and sintering, High pressure is applied at the sintering temperature to bring the particles together and thus accelerate sintering. Methods include Hot pressing Spark sintering Hot isostatic pressing (HIP) Hot rolling and extrusion Hot forging of powder preform Spray deposition

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Process Capabilities
Contional Metal Surface detail Mass, kg Min. section, mm Min. core diam. mm Tolerance +/-% Throughput (pc/h) Min. quantity Eq. Cost All B 0.01-5(30) 1.5 4-6 0.1 100-1000 1000-50,000 B-C 2 5-20 1-100 A HIP All (SA, SS) B-C 0.1-10 10-7000 (e) Injection Molding (IM) All (Steel, SS) B 0.01-0.2 1 1 0.3 100-2000 10,000 A-B Precision IM All A 0.005-0.2 0.1 0.2 0.1 100-2000 10,000 A-B Preform Forging Steel, SA A 0.1-3 3 5 0.25 200-2000 100,000 A-B 11

A: highest, B: median, C: lowest

Design Aspects

(a) Length to thickness ratio limited to 2-4; (b) Steps limited to avoid density variation; (c) Radii provided to extend die life, sleeves greater than 1 mm, through hole greater than 5 mm; (d) Featheredged punches with flat face; (e) Internal cavity requires a draft; (f) Sharp corner should be avoided; (g) Large wall thickness difference should be avoided; (h) Wall thickness should be larger than 1 mm. 12

Advantages and Disadvantages of P/M

Virtually unlimited choice of alloys, composites, and associated properties.
Refractory materials are popular by this process.

Controlled porosity for self lubrication or filtration uses. Can be very economical at large run sizes (100,000 parts). Long term reliability through close control of dimensions and physical properties. Very good material utilization. Limited part size and complexity High cost of powder material. High cost of tooling. Less strong parts than wrought ones. Less well known process.
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