Development of advanced sintering processes using novel high temperature thermal analysis techniques

烧结是一种允许从金属粉末中生产净形状零件的过程。烧结的一个主要优点是它减少了对材料去除步骤的需要，例如加工，从而降低了成本，能源使用和材料浪费。当烧结应用于运输应用的轻质金属（例如钛）时，可以实现减轻重量和降低燃料消耗的附加好处。***在本提案中，将研究使用混合元素（BE）和中间合金（MA）烧结生产两种钛合金（Ti-6wt%Al-4wt%V和Ti-10wt%V-2wt%Fe-3wt%Al）。在MA或BE烧结中，将商业纯（CP） Ti粉末与MA粉末（例如预合金化60wt % Al/40wt% V粉末）或元素粉末（例如6wt %纯Al和4wt % V粉末）混合，以获得所需的合金成分。这种粉末混合物被压实成接近净的形状，通常在压实的粉末之间具有占总零件体积20%至25%的孔隙。在烧结过程中，Al和V合金元素通过CP-Ti基体扩散，形成均匀的合金成分，同时有助于减少原始压实部件中的孔隙率。目前，成本最低的烧结途径，即使用大尺寸的CP-Ti粉末，无法获得大多数工业应用所需的最终性能。这主要是由于烧结工艺无法将原始孔隙率降低到小于2%的要求水平。三种热分析工具的组合将用于对使用大CP-Ti粉末的钛合金的MA和be烧结产生基本的理解。从这项工作中获得的见解将用于通过烧结开发更具成本效益和更高性能的Ti零件。这将增加这种轻金属在加拿大航空航天和汽车工业中的使用，有助于减轻重量，降低燃油经济性，最终减少温室气体排放。研究成果的应用将有助于提高加拿大公司的全球竞争力，改善加拿大人的社会经济福利

Sintering is a process which allows the net shape production of a part from metallic powder. A major advantage of sintering is that it reduces the need for material removal steps, such as machining, thus reducing costs, energy usage and material waste. When sintering is applied to lightweight metals (e.g. Titanium) for transportation applications, the added benefit of weight reduction and lower fuel consumption can be realized.*** In this proposal, the production of two Titanium alloys (Ti-6wt%Al-4wt%V and Ti-10wt%V-2wt%Fe-3wt%Al) using blended elemental (BE) and master alloy (MA) sintering will be investigated. In MA or BE sintering, commercially pure (CP) Ti powder is mixed with either an MA powder (e.g. a prealloyed 60 wt% Al/40wt% V powder) or elemental powders (e.g. 6 wt% pure Al and 4 wt% V) to obtain the desired alloy composition. This powder mixture is compacted into a near net shape, which typically has pores between the compacted powders in the range of 20 to 25% of the total part volume. During sintering, the Al and V alloying elements diffuse through the CP-Ti matrix, creating a uniform alloy composition, while helping to reduce the porosity present in the original compacted part. Currently, the lowest cost route of sintering, using a large CP-Ti powder size, is unable to obtain the final properties needed for most industrial applications. This is primarily due to the inability of the sintering process to reduce the original porosity to the required level of less than 2%. A combination of three thermal analysis tools will be used to generate a fundamental understanding of MA and BE sintering of Ti alloys using large CP-Ti powders. The insight gained from this work will be used to develop more cost effective, and higher performance Ti parts through sintering. This will increase the use of this light metal in the Canadian aerospace and automotive industries, facilitating weight reduction, lower fuel economy and ultimately a reduction in greenhouse gases. The application of the research results will contribute to an increase in the global competitiveness of Canadian companies and an improvement of the socioeconomic well being of Canadians.**