POWDER METALLURGY

[Music] It is an industry whose roots predate recorded history yet is marked by constant innovation. An industry that will touch nearly every aspect of our lives today. and help to shape our tomorrows. Powder metallurgy, an industry on the rise. [Music] [Applause] [Music] Whether you realize it or not, the results of PM technology are all around you. Why are so many product makers turning to powder metallurgy for creative solutions? >> Hi Heather. >> Product designers can very easily create unusual designs which are unavailable by any other process. >> You can achieve alloy compositions and structural uniformity totally unobtainable by other methods. Metal powder allows you to make high volume parts without the kind of waste that you normally have with other processes. We can design very complex shapes and that gives us a better performing component than we would normally get with any other manufacturing method. The sound of steel. That's what professional guitar players want from their instruments, and that's what they get with the Kaylor Tremolo. These are precision crafted devices with 20 PM steel parts. Kaylor found that the only practical way to get the quality they demand is by turning to powder metallurgy. [Music] Powder metallurgy or PM is a process in which metal particles are compressed into a desired shape and then heated to a high temperature so that the particles fuse together to form a durable able finished part. Seemingly a simple process, yet one that opens doors to vast possibilities. And the key to it all is metal powders. Although there are several ways to manufacture metal powders, most are created by a process called atomization. Raw materials are carefully pre-selected and then melted in an electric arc furnace. When the molten metal reaches the proper temperature and chemistry, it is transferred to an atomization chamber. Here, a stream of molten metal is intercepted by high pressure jets of either water or gas which break it up into droplets. Each step in the process is stringently controlled and monitored to asssure the highest quality, purity and uniformity. After a series of finishing operations, the result is a highly engineered material with very defined properties. Metal powder [Music] particles can be created in sizes ranging from as coarse as grains of salt to as fine as baby powder and in a wide variety of shapes and compositions. Nearly every metal known to man is available in powder form. Everything from basic elements like iron and copper to extremely sophisticated compositions such as super alloys. I like the thought of being able to make alloys that you can't make in other ways. Alloys with unique properties that you just can't get using using other things. >> This unique ability to control chemical, physical, and metallurgical characteristics allows PM to customtailor the exact properties required for the intended end use. Metal powders are essential ingredients in a broad spectrum of nonstructural products. However, most powders are destined for the manufacturer of high quality structural components. Powders are selected and blended to achieve desired properties, then fed into a dye where they are compacted under high pressure at room temperature. The resulting form has the shape and size of the finished part and is strong enough to be handled. It is then heated or centered in a protective atmosphere furnace. Here the particles are metallurgically bonded together at a temperature below the melting point of the base metal. PM's solid state consolidation technique makes it the most viable way to work with high melting point refractory metals such as tungsten and tantelin. [Music] But the versatility of PM extends to more than just materials. With PM, you can produce intricate shapes that would be difficult to achieve using traditional metal forming methods. And that means extraordinary design flexibility. >> The reason we used powdered metal in this new product was because there were some small, complex, highly loaded parts that really needed to be made out of metal. And due to their complexity, powdered metal was the only economical manufacturing method. >> PM can make many components economically without any sacrifice in the integrity of properties and performance. And since PM produces net or near net shapes, there are significant savings in scrap loss, labor, time, and energy compared to other metal forming processes. PM parts are dimensionally accurate and can be consistently reproduced, so the process is ideally suited for moderate to high volume production. State-of-the-art manufacturing equipment coupled with strict adherence to quality control standards assures that PM parts are second to none. As a product designer, I feel my products are only as good as the parts going into that product. PM gives me the reliability and repeatability I need for my products. No wonder so many different industries count on PM parts to give them the competitive edge. Each year, more than 300 million pounds of powder metal parts go into the cars we drive. Everything from windshield wipers and shock absorbers to critical transmission and engine components. Power metal processes are more reliable, more cost effective and uh are giving superior properties in automotive applications. You cannot have any breakdowns in the cars. You must have 100% reliability. You cannot sell any process to automotive engineers unless you have reliability. And that means better performance, dependability, and fuel efficiency. PM helps put the muscle in heavyduty earthmoving equipment. Some Caterpillar tractors contain more than 600 lb of PM parts. Rugged parts like this copper steel piston assembly are tough enough to tackle the most grueling conditions. Today's modern officers rely on a host of sophisticated business machines and they in turn rely on literally thousands of different PM components that stand up to the rigors of hightra use. Certainly powdered metal has helped Pney Bose continue its lead as being a world-class manufacturer in our product line. Gives us flexibility. It gives us the capability to adapt to new products, new designs, and it has kept our cost down. Everybody should be looking at powdered metal. >> Powder metal parts can even be found in that most complex of all machines, the human body. PM technology extends the functional life of this artificial hip joint, making replacement surgery far less frequent. From simple fasteners to complex electronic equipment, in power tools, sporting goods, and home appliances, wherever products call for high quality and versatility, PM parts are setting the pace. But the demands of high technology industries are ever increasing. So additional PM techniques have been developed to meet the challenge. Powder metal forging takes conventional compacting and centering a step further by applying an additional press hit at high temperature that imparts unsurpassed strength and durability. [Music] Parts like these PM forged connecting rods for automobile engines have a proven track record of success. Techniques such as isostatic pressing and injection molding also provide superior engineering characteristics while greatly increasing the size and shape capabilities of PM technology. >> PM is a very exciting industry because it's continually changing. It's continually evolving. It has a tremendous future >> and that future is taking shape today. Ongoing research continues to produce exotic new materials that will keep powder metallurgy in the vanguard of the advanced materials revolution. >> Entallics, for example, nickel aluminide are a new and developing class of materials that exhibit unique properties. oxidation and corrosion resistance, high temperature strength, and these therefore are candidate materials for the national aerospace plane projected for use in the 21st century. Experimental powder making methods and consolidation techniques such as rapid solidification are evolving into dynamic new technologies that will further expand the potential of powder metallurgy. Spray forming is a relatively new process which is hybrid in nature in that it involves both casting and powder metal energy. [Music] The result is we finish up with a high quality material in the form of a tube sheet plate or some other rot form. PM is the fastest growing metal working technology throughout the world and opportunities abound for those who have the energy and vision to help lead the way into the 21st century. >> Um, why do they use a log scale? >> A very discerning question, my boy. >> I believe the PM industry offers students a dynamic challenge to be really at the forefront of materials engineering. There is whole field of powder metallergy which just starts to be explored. >> There are new developments occurring every day in powder metallergy. That's what makes it so exciting. >> I think that within the next 10, 15, 20 years, you'll see methods really take off and just grow exponentially. >> You can invent with powdered metal. You can innovate with powdered metal. With PM, the future is there for the taking. >> Powder metallurgy, an industry with its finger on the pulse of today and its sight set firmly on a promising tomorrow.