Chapter 17. Processing of Metal Powders （第十七章。）.pdf

Chapter 17. Processing of Metal Powders 17.1 Introduction 17.1 Introduction This chapter describes the powder metallurgy (P/M) process, in which metal powders are compacted into desired and often complex shapes and sintered (heated without melting) to form a solid piece. This process first was used by the Egyptians in about 3000 B.C. to iron tools. One of its first modern uses was in the early 1900s to make the tungsten filaments for incandescent light bulbs. A wide range of parts and components are made by powder-metallurgy techniques (See Fig 17.1): (a) balls for ball-point pens, (b) automotive components (which constitute about 70% of the P/M market), (c) tool steels, tungsten carbide, and cermets as tool and die materials, (d) graphite brushes impregnated with copper for electric motors, (e) magnetic materials, (f) metal filters and oil-impregnated bearings with controlled porosity, (g) metal foams, (h) surgical implants, and (i) several others for aerospace, nuclear, and industrial application. P/M has become competitive with processes (such as casting, forging, and machining), particularly for relatively complex parts made of high strength and hard alloys. The most commonly used metals in P/M are iron, copper, aluminum, tin, nickel, titanium, and the refractory metals. Powder sources are generally bulk metals and alloys, salts, and other compounds. (b) (c) (a) Figure 17.1 (a) Examples of typical parts made by powder-metallurgy processes. (b) Upper trip lever for a commercial sprinkler made by P/M. This part is made of an unleaded brass alloy; it replaces a die-cast part with a 60% savings.