Powder metallurgy is an advanced technology that uses metal powders as raw materials and manufactures materials and components through four core processes: powder preparation, molding, sintering, and post-processing.
Compared with traditional casting and forging, it has significant advantages:
1. Near-net shaping: Traditional casting and forging require extensive machining to achieve precise shapes. The near-net shaping technology of powder metallurgy can control the dimensional accuracy of parts within ±0.05mm during the forming stage, reducing subsequent machining by more than 80%.
2. Material diversity: Traditional processes are limited in producing special composite materials. Powder metallurgy can prepare composites that are difficult to achieve with conventional methods, such as aluminum-based SiC and nanocrystalline soft magnets, by adjusting powder ratios and controlling sintering temperatures.
3. Energy saving and environmental protection: Traditional casting and forging have a material utilization rate of only 60%-70% due to reserved machining allowances. Near-net shaping in powder metallurgy can increase this to over 95%. In terms of energy consumption, traditional casting requires melting metals, and forging needs multiple heating and hammering steps, whereas powder metallurgy sintering does not require full melting of metals, reducing energy consumption by 40%-60%.
