Powder Injection Molding of Cu-Based Amorphous Powders and Fe-Based Metamorphic Powders

Powder injection molding (PIM) process was applied to Cu-based amorphous alloy powders and Fe-based metamorphic alloy powders, and microstructure, hardness, and wear resistance of the PIM products were analyzed. When Cu-based amorphous powders were injection-molded and sintered at 470 °C, sintering was not made since most of amorphous phases were replaced by crystalline phases. When sintered at higher temperatures, volume fraction of pores inside the sintered specimens decreased, but sintering was not properly conducted. When Fe-based metamorphic powders were injection-molded and then sintered at 1200 °C, completely densified products with almost no pores were obtained. They contained 34 vol.% of (Cr, Fe)₂B borides dispersed in the austenitic matrix without amorphous phases. Since these (Cr, Fe)₂B borides were hard and thermally stable, hardness, high-temperature hardness, and wear resistance of the PIM products of Fe-based metamorphic powders were twice as high as those of conventional PIM stainless steel products. These findings suggested new applicability of the PIM products of Fe-based metamorphic powders to structures and parts requiring excellent mechanical properties.