Acquisition of a Vacuum Sintering Furnace System

烧结工艺是材料的粉末加工的通用工艺，并且在粉末冶金、反应性和折射性金属以及陶瓷制造中都是重要的。 对材料性能和微观结构质量的关注使人们对烧结过程的控制产生了兴趣。 除了时间和温度控制之外，加热和冷却速率以及烧结环境对材料的成功烧结至关重要。 该炉系统是更好地理解增强烧结工艺和全密度烧结的重要一步。 该炉系统将允许新材料研究，重点是工艺因素及其对烧结材料微观结构-性能联系的影响。 研究应用范围从奥氏体不锈钢到钛铝化物，包括与先进材料的加工和制造相关的领域。该炉将位于宾夕法尼亚州立大学的颗粒材料中心，可供PI和全体教职员工使用。

The sintering process is generic to powder processing of materials, and is important both in powder metallurgy, reactive and refractive metals, and ceramic fabrication. Concerns with respect to material properties and microstructure quality create interest in control of the sintering process. Beyond time and temperature control, the heating and cooling rates, as well as the sintering environment prove crucial to successful sintering of materials. This furnace system is an important step in developing a better understanding of enhanced sintering processes and full density sintering. This furnace system will allow new materials research with an emphasis on processing factors and their impact on the microstructure-property links in sintered materials. Research applications range from austentitic stainless steels to titanium aluminides, and includes areas relevant to the processing and manufacturing of advanced materials. The furnace will be located in the Particulate Materials Center at Penn State and will be available for use by the PI and the entire faculty.