Forming of miniature components from powders by combining field-activated sintering and micro-forming

Qin, Y. and Zhao, J. and Huang, K. and Zulkipli, M. and Hijji, H. and Yang, Y. and Wu, M. and Yin, D. (2017) Forming of miniature components from powders by combining field-activated sintering and micro-forming. Procedia Engineering, 207. pp. 1212-1217. ISSN 1877-7058 (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2017.10.872)

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Abstract

Micro-FAST is a process concept which scales down conventional FAST to the micro-scale process (dealing with miniature an micro-sized components) and it combines the sintering process with a micro-forming process to enable shaping components under coupled multi-fields actions and hence, to achieve high-density, near-net-shaped components with high efficiency. The main techniques developed for overcoming the barriers for the applications of FAST at the miniature/micro-scales include: (i). Directly pressing/forming loose powders in the die without using binders; (ii). Combining heating and shaping to enable complex shapes/features; and (iii). Dedicatedly controlling fusion bonding and material’s plastic flow to enable high-quality forming. Forming from powders without using binders significantly shortened the process cycle, which also led to high-purity of the parts formed; Combining forming and sintering has led to high-density components produced as well as achieving complex-shaped components; Large current density (e.g., >100~400 KA/cm-2) enables very high heating rates and using small volumes of materials results in high cooling rates, leading to much shorter forming/sintering cycles which enables consolidation of micro/nanocomposites into bulk-sized components while also preserving their micro/nanostructures.

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