Powder Metallurgy

Powder metallurgy is a process which involves converting powder into a solid object, or Powder metallurgy is the process of blending fine powdered materials, pressing them into a desired shape, and then heating the compressed material in a controlled atmosphere to bond the material.

It generally consists four basic steps:

• Powder manufacture: The first step in powder metallurgy is converting raw material to a powder form. Crushing, grinding, and using chemical reactions are common ways to produce powder. Iron powders are produced by one of two processes: The sponge Iron Process or Water Atomization.

• Powder blending,

• Compacting: Powder compaction is the process of compacting metal powder in a die through the application of high pressures.The tools are held in the vertical orientation with the punch tool forming the bottom of the cavity. The powder is then compacted into a shape and then ejected from the die cavity.

•  Sintering: Solid state sintering is the process of taking metal in the form of a powder and placing it into a mold or die. Once compacted into the mold the material is placed under a high heat for a long period of time. Under heat, bonding takes place between the porous aggregate particles and once cooled the powder has bonded to form a solid piece.

"Atomization is a technique in which the material is melted into a molten liquid and forced through a small nozzle or tube at high velocity. This causes the liquid to separate into individual droplets as it exits the tube. The droplets are collected and allowed to harden, resulting in fine, grain-sized particles."