The consistent high quality of sintered parts produced by Metal Injection Moulding, or
AM processes such as Binder Jetting, can only be achieved with stable manufacturing
conditions. Inhomogeneous and transient temperatures in sintering furnaces are
one area where variability can be difficult to manage. This article outlines how
simulation can lead to an optimal set up for the sintering process – or at least a
best compromise – via the assessment of many possible process variations. Dr Götz
Hartmann and Dr Wilfried Schäfer, MAGMA GmbH, and Dr Jesper Thorborg, Technical
University of Denmark, share the results of recent research.
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The 2023 International Conference on Injection Moulding of Metals, Ceramics and Carbides (MIM2023), organised by the Metal Powder Industries Federation (MPIF)’s Metal Injection Molding Association (MIMA), was held in Costa Mesa, California, USA, from February 27 to March 1, 2023. As well as being the annual meeting point of the US Metal Injection Molding community, the event attracts an international audience and has broadened in scope to include sinter-based Additive Manufacturing processes. Dr Animesh Bose reviews some highlights from the MIM2023 technical programme.
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Steinbach AG is considered a pioneer in the use of Additive Manufacturing for the serial production of high-performance technical ceramics. This case study describes its pioneering path to successfully implement the manufacturing of a new type of ceramic tube, with highly complex geometries, to be used in Da Vinci Surgical Systems robotic solutions for endoscopic surgery. With this application, Steinbach has achieved an annual production rate of 12,000 units and, in so doing, established itself as a leading service provider in ceramic AM.
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As exploration of the potential of metal Binder Jetting (BJT) picks up pace, so does the diversity of materials processed using the technology. At the 2022 World PM Congress, organised by the European Powder Metallurgy Association (EPMA) and held in Lyon, October 9-13, a number of presentations reported on developments that looked at a range of materials with commercial potential for BJT, including aluminium alloys, nickel-free stainless steel, hardmetals (cemented carbides) and metallic glass. Dr David Whittaker reports for PIM International.
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How has the global Metal Injection Molding industry weathered the most turbulent years in recent history, and what has the impact been on MIM’s key markets worldwide? In this overview, PIM International’s Nick Williams reports on market data presented at World PM2022, the first Powder Metallurgy World Congress since the COVID pandemic, held in Lyon, France from October 9-13. This is supplemented by other available data sources and insight from conversations with industry leaders at the event.
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HP’s Metal Jet has undergone significant refinement in the years since it was first unveiled in 2018. Now, by incorporating nearly the whole Binder Jetting workflow in one solution, HP hopes that the Metal Jet S100 – commercially launched at IMTS 2022 and showcased at Formnext 2022 – will tempt the wider manufacturing community into the world of AM. As Binder Jetting’s evolution moves from the intricacies of process optimisation to real application development and growth, Emily-Jo Hopson-VandenBos reports on a recent visit to HP’s Barcelona 3D Printing campus and the company’s progress and growing momentum since 2018.
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Tritone’s MoldJet is unique as an Additive Manufacturing process – not Binder Jetting, Material Extrusion, nor Material Jetting, the MoldJet process involves a number of steps that share features with common sinter-based AM technologies, but don’t quite fall under their definitions. But this isn’t simply a novel fringe technology: Tritone’s founders have drawn on extensive experience within Israel’s 2D and 3D printing ecosystem to build a robust AM platform that is very simple, yet highly sophisticated. Joseph Kowen visited Tritone and here reports on the MoldJet process and its potential applications.
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Since the very first PM Titanium conference in Brisbane, Australia, in 2011, the PMTi series has been the essential meeting point where technical and commercial advances in the powder-based production of titanium parts are discussed. Encompassing production technologies from Metal Injection Molding to Additive Manufacturing, this year’s event was no different. As Dr Thomas Ebel reports, the technologies involved have moved significantly towards production readiness, but with the ever-present playoff of non-negotiable performance goals against the drive to reduce cost.
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Binder Jetting (BJT) is never far from the headlines in the worlds of Powder Metallurgy and Additive Manufacturing, but, whilst there has been a lot of emphasis on Binder Jetting’s build process, the crucial sintering stage has received less attention. Can we really go along with the assumption that it’s ‘just like sintering for Metal Injection Moulding’? Here, Markus Schneider and colleagues from GKN Sinter Metals Engineering GmbH, GKN Additive and Hoeganaes Corporation bring together their deep expertise in sintering to reveal just how differently metal BJT parts perform, and what implications there are for part design and future process optimisation.
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The hardmetals industry is well used to making high-performance components from metallic powders. Today it is an industry with global sales in excess of $15 billion and applications that range from cutting tool inserts to components for oil & gas, construction and beyond. The processing of hardmetals, otherwise known as cemented carbides, by Additive Manufacturing has inevitably become an area of intense activity, building, in part, on expertise from the industry’s use of MIM to deliver greater design complexity. Bernard North reports on innovations in the sinter-based AM of hardmetals presented at this year’s Plansee Seminar.
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