Fabrication of Metals

Powder Metallurgy
Classification
 Powder metallurgy

• The compaction of powdered metal, followed

by a heat treatment to produce a more dense
piece. The process is appropriately called
powder metallurgy, frequently designated as
P/M.
• Powder metallurgy makes it possible to
produce a virtually nonporous piece having
properties almost equivalent to the fully
dense parent material.

• Diffusional processes during the heat

treatment are central to the development of
these properties
 Suitability
• This method is especially suitable for metals
having low ductility's, since only small plastic
deformation of the powder particles need
occur.

• Metals having high melting temperatures are

difficult to melt and cast, and fabrication is
expedited using P/M.
 Applications
• Furthermore, parts that require very close
dimensional tolerances (e.g., bushings and
gears) may be economically produced using
this technique
 Process
Schematic of the P/M process.

• We start with the raw materials that need to be mixed to prepare them for the
next stage of the process - compaction.

• During compaction the powders are consolidated into a net shaped or a near net
shaped component. The as-pressed component is called a green compact.

• During the next stage of the P/M process the green compact is sintered in a
furnace that is filled with an inert or reducing gas atmosphere.

• In the first zone of the sintering furnace the lubricant that was added during the
initial mixing step is removed from the compact. The lubricant is needed to assist
the powder particle rearrangement that occurs during compaction and then to
help reduce frictional forces during ejection of the compacted part from the die
cavity.

• As the temperature is increased in subsequent zones of the sintering furnace, the

metal powder particles begin to bond to one another via a process called diffusion.
• Diffusion processes also permit admixed powders to alloy with the
base powder of the initial mixture to develop the desired alloy
composition.

• The extent of diffusion at the end of the high-heat zone of the

furnace determines the hardenability of the sintered material. This,
in turn, determines the microstructure that will be developed in the
sintered compact upon cooling to ambient temperature.

• Some P/M parts are ready to be used in the as-sintered condition.

• Others need to be sized to qualify their dimensions, some are

machined to add a feature not incorporated during compaction,
while some need to be heat treated.
 The P/M Process
Raw
Materials
Mixing

Elemental or Compaction
Alloy
Powders
+
Controlled Atmosphere
Additives
Sintering
Graphite
Lubricants
Secondary
Operations
Repressing; Heat Treatment; Machining; Welding
 The Powder Metallurgy Process
Metal Powders

Mixing

Compaction

Sintering
Powder Metallurgy Applications
The first modern powder metallurgy product was the
tungsten filament of electric light bulbs developed in the
early 1900s.

Today the industry is truly international and growing in all

the major industrialized countries.

Companies range from those producing conventional

powdered metal parts using iron and copper-based
powders through to manufacturers of specialty products
including superalloys, porous products, friction materials,
magnetic powder cores and ferrites, tungsten carbide
cutting tools and wear parts.
Powder Metallurgy Parts
Structural Parts

Sintered Structural Components Sintered Structural Components

Filters Sintered Oil-Retaining Bearings

Filters Bearings
Powder metallurgy is used in the manufacture of parts for:

Automobile industry - motors, gear assemblies, brake pads

Abrasives - polishing and grinding wheels

Manufacturing - cutting and drilling tools (using hard metals)

Electric and magnetic devices - magnets, soft magnetic cores, batteries

Medical and dental - prostheses, amalgams

Aerospace - motors, heat shields, structural parts

Welding - solder, electrodes

Energy - electrodes, fuel cells

Other - porous filters, bearings, sporting goods etc.

 Powder Metallurgy Standards

 ASTM Committee B09

 Metal Powder Industries Federation (MPIF)
 SAE Powder Metallurgy Standards
 DIN Powder Metallurgy Standards
 International Standards Organization (ISO)