Sintering Behaviour and Mechanical Properties of Al–Cu–Mg–Si–Sn Aluminum Alloy

The present study investigates the effect of compaction pressure and sintering temperature on densification response and mechanical properties of the Al–3.8Cu–1Mg–0.8Si–0.3Sn (2712) alloy. The compacts were pressed at 200 and 400 MPa and sintered at temperatures ranging from 570–630°C in vacuum (10^?6 Torr). The objective of the present work is to obtain an optimum sintering conditions for achieving higher sintered densities and mechanical properties. The effect of sintering temperature is evaluated by measuring the sintered density, densification parameter, microstructure, phase changes and mechanical properties. While a higher sintering temperature results in densification enhancement, it also leads to microstructural coarsening. Significant improvement in mechanical properties is obtained through age-hardening of sintered alloy under various ageing conditions (T4, T6 and T8).     

Effect of Cu3P addition on sintering behaviour of elemental powders in the composition of 465 stainless steel

Abstract

The addition of Cu₃P for developing the high strength 465 maraging stainless steel from elemental powders was studied. The sintering parameters investigated were sintering temperature, sintering time and wt-%Cu₃P. In vacuum sintering, effective sintering took place between 1300 and 1350°C. The maximum sintered density of 7·44 g cm^?3 was achieved at 1350°C for 60 min with 4–6 wt-%Cu₃P. More than 6 wt-%Cu₃P content and temperature >1350°C caused slumping of the specimens. The sintered specimens were heat treated and a maximum ultimate tensile strength (UTS) of 767 MPa was achieved with 4 wt-%Cu₃P content. The maximum hardness of 45·5 HRC was achieved in heat treated condition with 4 wt-%Cu₃P content. Above 4 wt-%Cu₃P content increase in density was observed whereas the response to heat treatment decreased. Fracture morphologies of the sintered specimens were also reported. A comparison of sintering behaviour and mechanical properties of elemental powders with prealloyed powders was also given in the present study.     

Effects of lubricants and compacting pressure on the processability and properties of aluminum P/M parts

Lubricants are generally admixed to metal powders to ease compaction and minimize the interaction between the tooling and the compact during ejection. The type and concentration of the lubricant have a significant impact on the processability and the characteristics of the material. While extensive work has been performed with iron-based mixes, relatively few studies have been published on the effects of lubricants and shaping conditions on the processing behavior and characteristics of aluminum (Al) components fabricated by powder metallurgy (P/M).This paper presents the effects of the lubricant type (ethylene bisstearamide vs. polyethylene wax), the lubricant concentration (0.7–1.5 wt.%), as well as the compacting pressure (138–413 MPa) on the powder characteristics and the properties of press and sintered 2xxx series aluminum alloy specimens (AMB-2712). Compaction and ejection characteristics, surface finish, green density and strength, dimensional change during sintering, sintered density and mechanical properties are presented and discussed.     

On development of press and sinter Al–Ni–Mg powder metallurgy alloys

Abstract

The objective of this research was to initiate the development of powder metallurgy alloys based on the Al–Ni–Mg system. In doing so, binary (Al–Mg) and ternary (Al–Ni–Mg) blends were prepared, compacted and sintered using elemental and master alloy feedstock powders. Research began with fundamental studies on the sintering response of the base aluminium powder with additions of magnesium. This element proved essential to the development of a well sintered microstructure while promoting the formation of a small nodular phase that appeared to be AlN. In Al–Ni–Mg systems a well sintered structure comprised of α aluminium plus NiAl₃ was produced at the higher sintering temperatures investigated. Of these ternary alloys studied, Al–15Ni–1Mg exhibited mechanical properties that were comparable with existing commercial 'press and sinter' alloys. The processing, reaction sintering and tensile properties of this alloy were also found to be reproducible in an industrial production environment.     

Synthesis and properties of Cu–Al–Ni shape memory alloy strips prepared via hot densification rolling of powder preforms

Abstract

Cu–Al–Ni shape memory alloy strips were successfully prepared by a powder metallurgy route consisting of preparing powder preforms from premixed Cu, Al and Ni powders by cold compaction, stepwise sintering in the range 873–1273 K, followed by unsheathed multipass hot rolling at 1273 K in protective atmosphere. The densification behaviour of the sintered powder preforms during hot rolling has been discussed. Homogenisation of the hot rolled strips was carried out at 1173 K for 4 h. It has been shown that the finished Cu–Al–Ni alloy strip consisted of self-accommodated plates ofβ' and γ' martensites together with a small amount of nanocrystalline Cu₉Al₄ phase. The finished hot rolled Cu–Al–Ni strips had fracture strength of 476 MPa, coupled with 2·5% elongation. The shape memory tests showed almost 100% recovery after 10 thermomechanical cycles in the hot rolled strips at 1 and 2% applied prestrain.     

Hard Alloy WC–24% Ni Obtained in the Solid Phase from Ultrafine WC,NiO, and C Powders. Part 2. Mechanical Properties

Mechanical properties of WC–24 mass% Ni alloy prepared by a combination in single stage of metal phase synthesis and compaction of an ultrafine mixture of WC–Ni powders by high-energy compaction and sintering are studied. Tungsten carbide, nickel oxide, and carbon are selected as the starting powders. After milling the initial powders the average particle size is 200-300 nm. Previously compacted briquettes of WC + NiO + C are heated, sintered, and pressed in the range 950-1300°C at vacuum of 0.133 Pa. Briquettes are also sintered in the liquid phase at 1350°C for comparison. Ultimate strength in bending, fracture toughness, ultimate strength in compression, and Vickers hardness are determined for specimens prepared at different temperatures. The dependence of mechanical properties on specimen consolidation temperature is studied. It is shown that these dependences for pressed specimens have a maximum at 1200-1250°C. The high level of properties (ultimate strength in bending 2500 MPa, ultimate strength in compression 3100 MPa, fracture toughness 19 MPa·m^1/2, and hardness 10.0 GPa) are achieved for a WC + Ni + C powder mixture to which carbon is added in the form of a liquid carbon-containing compound. Introduction into the mixture of commercial carbon grade P803 leads to low specimen mechanical properties. The effect on mechanical properties of porosity and pore size, and also grain boundary quality between particles is studied.     

Study of warm compaction of Alumix 123 L

Abstract

Although powder metallurgy (PM) material is dominated by ferrous alloys, there is a growing interest in Al PM. The usage of Al PM in automotive applications depends on the development of higher density and improved dynamic properties. Several approaches have been proposed to increase density of sintered parts. Warm compaction process of Al powder was used to achieve high density. In this study the authors focused on the effect of warm compaction on Alumix 123 L (ECKA Granules) powder blend. It has been found that warm compaction at 110°C led to a reduction in the ejection force by 27·9%, increased green density to 94% of theoretical density and increased sintered strength to 315 MPa as compared to those pressed at room temperature.     

Influences of sintering atmospheres on densification process of injection moulded gas atomised 316L stainless steel

Abstract

Densification of metal injection moulded 316L stainless steel is one of the hottest research fields in powder metallurgy in recent years. In the present work, various sintering atmospheres, i.e. N₂, N₂ + H₂, Ar and Ar + H₂, were adopted to investigate their influences on the sintered density, pore size, pore shape, grain size and mechanical properties. Relative densities of 98% of the theoretical density (7·84 g cm^-3 and 7·85 g cm^-3), pore sizes about 2~3 μm and mean grain sizes about 50 μm could be obtained after the specimens were sintered in Ar and Ar + H₂ atmospheres. Optimised mechanical properties could be acquired in Ar + H₂ atmosphere, i.e. σ _b = 630 MPa, σ _0·2 = 80 MPa, δ = 52%, HRB = 71. When sintered in N₂ and N₂ + H₂, the specimens have lower densities than those sintered in Ar and Ar + H₂. An ultimate tensile strength of 765 MPa and a hardness of 82 HRB could be obtained respectively in N₂ + H₂ and N₂, atmospheres. The dimensional tolerance of the sintered part is less than ±0·5% with the sintered dimension ranged from 2·64 to 43·07 mm.     

Effects of wet and dry milling conditions on properties of mechanically alloyed and sintered W–C and W–B4C–C composites

Abstract

Tungsten based W–1C and W–2B₄C–1C (wt-%) powders synthesised by mechanical alloying (MA) for milling durations of 10, 20 and 30 h, in wet (ethanol) and dry conditions, were characterised. X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy investigations revealed Co contamination which increased with increasing milling time during wet milling. X-ray diffraction investigations revealed the presence of W and WC phases in all powders, Co₃C intermetallic in the wet milled W–1C powders and W₂B intermetallic phase in both wet and dry milled W–2B₄C–1C powders. As blended and MA processed powders were consolidated into green compacts by uniaxial cold pressing at 500 MPa and solid phase sintered at 1680°C under hydrogen and argon atmospheres for 1 h. X-ray diffraction investigations revealed the presence of W₂C intermetallic phase in sintered composites produced from both wet and dry milled W–1C powders and the W₂B intermetallic phase in sintered material from the wet milled W–2B₄C–1C powder. Sintered composites from wet milled powders showed relative densities >91%, with the maximum density of 99·5% measured for the sintered 30 h wet milled W–2B₄C–1C composites. Microhardness values for the wet milled W–1C and W–2B₄C–1C composites were 2–2·5 times higher than those for dry milled composite powders. A maximum hardness value of 23·7±2·1 GPa was measured for the sintered W–2B₄C–1C composite wet milled for 20 h.     

Spark plasma sintering versus hot pressing – densification,bending strength,microstructure, and tribological properties of Ti5Al2.5Fe alloys

Ti5Al2.5Fe alloys were fabricated by the spark plasma sintering (SPS) and hot pressing (HP) pressure-assisted sintering techniques from pre-alloyed powders with a particle size of about 200?μm. The powders were sintered at 850 °C for two different holding times (5 and 8 min) and heating rates (50 and 150°C?min^?1) at 25?MPa. The maximum relative densities were 99.70 and 98.78% for SPS and HP samples, respectively. All the alloys prepared by the SPS process had significantly higher bending strengths (1825–2074?MPa) than the alloys prepared by the HP process (648–1330?MPa). A decrease in the heating rate from 150 to 50°C min^?1 enhanced the wear resistance of the Ti5Al2.5Fe alloys prepared by both the SPS and HP processes.     

Effect of Lead Addition and Milling on Densification and Mechanical Properties of 6061 Aluminium Alloys

In the present work, one batch of prealloyed 6061Al powder was mixed with different lead compositions (5, 10, 15 vol.%) and another set with same composition was ball-milled for 5 h at 300 rpm. Microstructural features such as lattice constant, crystallite size, particle size and morphology were studied using XRD, particle size analyzer and SEM. Both the as-mixed as well as ball-milled powders were compacted at 300 MPa and sintered under N₂ atmosphere for 1 h in tube furnace at 590 °C. The ball milling of 6061Al alloy powder improved sinter density and densification while lead addition showed negligible influence on these parameters. The microstructure of as-mixed 6061Al–Pb alloys exhibited equiaxial morphology whereas ball-milling resulted in elongated grains with uniform lead distribution. Quasi-static compressive mechanical behavior was investigated for 6061Al–Pb alloys at 1 × 10^?3 s^?1 strain rate. Results indicated that ultimate compressive and yield strength were sensitive to milling and lead volume fraction.     

Influence of Lubricants on Dimensional Changes and Mechanical Properties of Sintered Ferrous Compacts

Abstract

The influence of admixed zinc stéarate on the shrinkage of uniaxially pressed iron powder compacts has been studied. For pressing conditions which caused inhibition of compaction the removal of the stéarate during sintering produced an increase in shrinkage parallel to the pressing axis and in direct proportion to lubricant content. Additions of stearic acid (varying particle size), zinc stearate, lithium stearate, stearamide, and Cosmic 64 wax were used to investigate the influence of lubricant on mechanical properties of green and sintered iron powder compacts. Green strength was reduced relative to unlubricated material only by lubricants whose physical and chemical properties enabled them to produce and maintain extensive interparticle films during pressing. Vapour from the rapid initial decomposition of lubricants which reduced green strength could have a deleterious physical influence on the tensile strength of dewaxed or sintered Fe compacts. Decomposing lubricants also produced undesirable chemical effects. These arose from reactions between lubricant decomposition products and the matrix or by these products interfering with reactions between matrix and sintering atmosphere.     

Supersolidus liquid phase sintering of high speed steels: Part 3: computer aided design of sinterable alloys

Abstract

Calculated multicomponent phase diagrams were used to identify high speed steel (HSS) type alloys having the potential to exhibit enhanced sinter ability. The requirement was for an extensive austenite + carbide + liquid phase field. Of the six tungsten and molybdenum based systems studied, Fe–14Mo–C + 4Cr–8Co systems were potentially the most promising. Appropriate compositions were water atomised and additional alloys prepared by blending annealed powders with graphite powders. Powders were compacted to green densities of about 70% theoretical and then vacuum sintered. Sinterability was assessed in terms of sintered densities and microstructures. Alloys containing Fe–13Mo–1·3C, Fe–14Mo–4Cr–1·3C, and Fe–14Mo– 8Co–4Cr–1·4C were sintered to full density at temperatures as low as 1170°C, 70–150 K lower than for existing HSSs. Sintering windows were 20– 30 K, a significant improvement on existing HSSs. As sintered microstructures consisted of angular M₆ C carbides dispersed in martensitic matrixes, which is typical for correctly sintered HSS. Heat treatment response and cutting performance for the sinterable grades were assessed and found to be comparable to existing HSS. The cutting performance of Fe–14Mo– 8Co–4Cr–1·4C tools at 45 and 52·5 m min^-1 was superior to both cast wrought M2 and T1 tools of identical geometry. Lower carbon contents resulted in an increase in sintering temperature and a reduction in the width of the sintering window. Higher carbon contents destroyed sinterability, since they led to the formation of M₂ C eutectic structures in the undersintered condition. Alloy sinterability was correlated to differential thermal analysis data obtained during heating of powders. The variations in sinterability with alloy composition are discussed with reference to phase diagrams; the degradation in sinterability observed at carbon contents above 1·4% is attributed to the presence of ternary eutectic phase fields. The commercial implications of the relationship between sinterability and alloy composition are discussed.     

Microstructure characteristics in Al-C system after mechanical alloying and high temperature treatment

Abstract

In this work elemental powders of Al and 2 wt-% graphite were mechanically alloyed in a high energy horizontal attritor under purified argon atmosphere for 0·5-2 h. Powder mixes were then cold pressed at 1200 MPa and sintered at 550°C for between 2-32 h under the same protective atmosphere. Structural evolution was characterised by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy techniques. Results revealed that mechanical alloying was very effective in pulverising the powder mix, where after 2 h, the mix was fine enough to oxidise rigorously when exposed to open air. In general however, mechanical alloying was found to be inefficient to synthesise Al with C. But after sintering, Al₄C₃ phase nanosized particles were formed in the microstructure. When the duration of sintering was prolonged, the particle population multiplied in number. Hence because of improvement in dispersion strengthening, the room temperature hardness of the material increased gradually.     

Fabrication,microstructures and properties of 50 vol.-% SiCp/6061Al composites via a pressureless sintering technique

Commercial F500 SiC powder and 6061 Al powder were chosen to fabricate the 50?vol.-% SiCp/6061Al composites via pressureless sintering. Effects of pre-treatment of the SiC powder and sintering temperature on the microstructures and properties of the composites were studied. Densification mechanism and interfacial reaction of the composites were also investigated. The results show that the composites have a high sintering ability and a low interfacial reaction activity. The density, bending strength and thermal conductivity of the composites are all sensitive to the sintering temperature. The composites sintered at 680°C are nearly fully dense and have the following optimal properties: the relative density of 98.5%, the bending strength of 495?MPa, the TC of 153?W/(m?K) and the coefficient of thermal expansion of 8.1?×?10^?6/°C (50–100°C), which are superior to most of the SiCp/Al composites of the similar composition reported previously.     

Effects of sintering process and heat treatments on microstructures and mechanical properties of VANADIS 4 tool steel added with TiC powders

Abstract

In this study, commercial VANADIS 4 (V-4) tool steel powders were classified by sifting, which was previously the matrix, and fine TiC powder was used as an additive to produce a new material with high hardness and wear resistance, via powder metallurgy and a sintering process. Experimental results showed that the transverse rupture strength of the original V-4 steel powder was 678·5 MPa and was enhanced to 868·6 MPa below 25 μm, after the addition of 35 wt-%TiC powders through sintering at 1400°C. In addition, the hardness increased to 86·2 HRA, transverse rupture strength reached 1059·3 MPa and porosity decreased to 1·2% of the V-4 steel powders (below 25 μm) added with 35 wt-%TiC after sintered at 1400°C and annealed at 850°C, followed by quenching at 1030°C and tempering at 200°C.     

THE IMPORTANCE OF ATMOSPHERE CONTROL IN HARD-METAL PRODUCTION

Abstract

The furnace atmospheres used in the manufacture of hard-metal from the pressed compact to the sintered component are discussed.

The very fine size (0·5–8·0 μm) of the powder particles makes the compacts particularly prone to react with furnace atmospheres. All these reactions affect the carbon content of the alloys, which must be controlled within extremely close limits to ensure good quality.

The removal of pressing lubricant, presintering, and final sintering all involve heating the components to temperatures at which reactions with the furnace atmosphere can occur. Both hydrogen and vacuum furnaces are used and care is required to maintain a quality of atmosphere that will not lead to a deleterious change in carbon content.     

Transient liquid phase sintering of high density Fe3Al using Fe and Fe2Al5/FeAl2 powders Part 1: Experimentation and results

Abstract

High density Fe₃Al was produced through transient liquid phase sintering, using rapid heating rates of greater than 150 K min^-1 and a mixture of prealloyed and elemental powders. Prealloyed Fe₂Al₅/FeAl₂ (50Fe/50Al, wt-%) powder was added to elemental iron powder in a ratio appropriate for producing an overall Fe₃Al (13·87 wt-%) ratio. The heating rate, sintering time, sintering temperature, green density and powder particle size were controlled during the study. Heating rate, sintering time and powder particle size had the most significant influence upon the sintered density of the compacts. The highest sintered density of 6·12 Mg m^-3 (92% of the theoretical density for Fe3Al) was achieved after 15 minutes of sintering at 1350°C, using a 250 K min^{- 1} heating rate, 1-6 μm Fe powders and 5·66 μm alloy powders.

SEM microscopy suggests that agglomerated Fe₂Al₅/ FeAl₂ particles, which form a liquid during sintering, are responsible for a significant portion of the remaining porosity in high sintered density compacts, creating stable pores, larger than 100 μm diameter, after melting. High density was achieved by minimising the Kirkendall porosity formed during heating by unbalanced diffusion and solubility between the iron and Fe₂Al₅/FeAl₂ components. The lower diffusion rate of aluminium in the prealloyed powder into the iron compared with elemental aluminium in iron, coupled with a fast heating rate, is expected to permit minimal iron-aluminium interdiffusion during heating so that when a liquid forms the aluminium dissolves in the iron to promote solidification at a lower aluminium content. This leads to a further reduction in porosity.     

Comparison of sintering of titanium and titanium hydride powders

Abstract

The cold compaction and vacuum sintering behaviour of a Ti powder and a Ti hydride powder were compared. Master sintering curve models were developed for both powders. Die ejection force, green strength and green porosity were lower for hydride powder than for Ti powder, all probably resulting from reduced cold welding and friction during compaction. For sintering temperatures above ～1000°C, most of the difference in the sintered density of Ti and hydride is explained by assuming equal densification, while taking into account the lower green porosity of compacts made from hydride powder. However, there is evidence that particle fracture during compaction also contributes to increased sintered density for hydride powder. The Ti powder conformed to a master sintering curve model with apparent activation energy of 160 kJ mol^?. The activation energy for Ti hydride also appeared to be about 160 kJ mol^?, but the model did not fit the experimental data well.