Importance

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Abstract

The present invention is concerned with a method of molding metallic powders, in which a binder fluid having a specific freezing point, typically water, is added to the metallic powder to be molded to form a mixture, after which a die having the desired cavity is filled with said mixture. The mixture is then pressure molded and rapidly cooled, freezing the binder fluid to produce a frozen molded shape, which is then dried to remove the binder fluid and sintered. The amount of the binder fluid of specific freezing point to be added to the said metallic powder is the minimum amount that will satisfy the dual demands of flowability during molding and shape retention after the removal of the binder fluid, with from 25 to 50 vol% generally being appropriate. Molding is achieved by injection molding, compression molding or other technique in which pressure is applied to the material in the mold. The present invention makes possible the easy and economical mass production of sintered products of complex shape, high dimensional accuracy, and high density using metallic material.

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First Claim