Metal/ceramic composite molding material
AssigneeAlliedSignal Inc.
InventorsMohammad Behi, Michael Zedalis, Richard Lewis Duyckinck, Joan Burlew
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Abstract
A composite molding compound comprising a combination of metal and ceramic powders is disclosed. The powders are combined with a binder, a liquid carrier and other processing additives in a manner to provide uniform distribution of two phases in a material format that facilitates the molding of complex parts at relatively low pressures and temperatures using conventional injection molding machines. The products formed from these molding compounds may be designed with tailored physical and mechanical properties such as thermal conductivity, thermal expansion coefficient, density, elastic modulus and wear properties.
Claims33
A composite molding compound comprising:
- a) a mixture of a metal powder and a ceramic powder,
- b) a gel-forming material selected from the group of polysaccharides consisting of agaroids, and
- c) a gel-forming material solvent,
- said mixture being formulated in a blender that provides shearing action thereto and the blender being heated to raise the temperature of the mixture to about 75 to 100° C.
A process for forming an article comprising the steps of:
- a) formulating a composite mixture of a metal powder and a ceramic powder, a gel-forming material selected from the group of polysaccharides consisting of agaroids, and a gel-forming material solvent,
- said mixture being formulated in a blender that provides shearing action thereto and the blender being heated to raise the temperature of the mixture to about 75 to 100° C.;
- b) supplying the mixture at a temperature above the gel point of the gel-forming material into an injection molding machine;
- and
- c) molding the mixture under conditions of temperature and pressure to produce a self-supporting article.
A method for producing a homogeneous composite molding compound comprising the steps of:
- a) mixing a metal powder with water and a gel-forming material selected from the group of polysaccharides consisting of agaroids;
- b) mixing a ceramic powder with water and a dispersant, and ball milling the mixture to reduce the particle size thereof;
- c) compounding the metal powder mixture and the ceramic powder mixture;
- and
- d) shredding the compound mixture into a particulate format.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.