Sintering technology is ruled by complex engineering equations. There are holding temperatures and material characteristics to regulate, plus a slew of phase transforming processes to regulate. Simply put, there are recipes to follow, and those recipes contain a whole lot of mathematically controlled elements. Nothing is left to chance. Of those many processing variables, sintering […]
Sintering is all about post-compaction heating, about finding a way to control the coalescence of metal powders. Knowing the definition helps, of course, but it doesn’t really tell us what’s taking place within the coalescing mass. That’s a harder system to understand, but its various mechanisms have been examined in some depth. It begins with […]
Imagine the powder metallurgical process as a series of illustrated steps. The powders and additives mix, then they’re formed and sintered. The process is clearly marked out in the various illustrations. Adding another illustrated block to the process, infiltration action strengthens powder metal components. Basically, the technique adds a second metal to the part, and […]
There’s a tendency to put self-lubricating bearings in their own applications spotlight. Alternatively, given the chance, curious would-be engineers should try giving other powdered metal parts their chance to shine. Granted, bearing technology owes a lot to powder metallurgy, but there is a whole other range of equally capable powder-fabricated products, all of which use […]
Historically speaking, powdered metals are recognized as moderately strong materials. They form relatively hard bearings and other self-lubricating items. By heat treating sintered metal parts, they become even tougher. In point of fact, the sintering process uses thermal energy and pressure, so some heat treated hardenability is applied during the production phase. Okay, this strength-conversion […]