Metal flake product suited for the production of metal powder for powder metallurgical purposes, and a process for manufacturing the product
AssigneeSKF Nova AB
InventorBengt G. S. Lundgren
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Abstract
A steel flake product, suitable for being crushed or ground to form a steel powder for powder metallurgical purposes, consists of a plurality of relatively thin, brittle and easily crushed, substantially dendrite-free steel flakes of amorphous to compact-grained structure. Such steel flakes are produced by causing molten steel to form at least one discrete, relatively thin flake-shaped layer on a relatively cold metal surface of great cooling capacity, moving rapidly and substantially across the direction of delivery of the molten steel. Due to the great cooling capacity the layer is made to solidify extremely rapidly.
Claims12
A steel flake product suited for the production of steel powder for powder metallugical purposes, characterized in that it consists of a plurality of thin, brittle and easily crushed, substantially dendrite-free steel flakes of amorphous to compact-grained structure.
A process for manufacturing a steel flake product suited for the production of steel powder for powder metallurgical purposes, which comprises causing molten steel, which is of such a composition that rapid cooling of thin layers of the melt produces brittle crushable films, to impinge, in a vacuum or protective gas, upon a cold metal surface of great cooling capacity maintained at a temperature at least 200.degree. C. lower than the solidification temperature of the molten steel and moving rapidly and substantially across the direction of delivery of the molten steel, to form a discrete, thin flake-shaped layer of molten steel on the metal surface, thereby causing the thin layer to solidify rapidly on the cold metal surface to form thin, brittle and easily crushed substantially dendrite-free steel flakes of amorphous to compact-grained structure.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.