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AssigneeAir Products and Chemicals, Inc.
InventorsDiwakar Garg, Donald James Bowe, James Garfield Marsden, Kerry Renard Berger, Xianming Li
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A method and apparatus for introducing an oxidant mixed with a carrier gas into pre-heating zone of a continuous furnace for effectively removing lubricant from powder metal compacts prior to sintering at high temperatures. Mixing a controlled amount of a gaseous oxidizing agent such as moisture, carbon dioxide, air or mixtures thereof with a carrier gas and introducing the mixture into the preheating zone of a continuous furnace under controlled conditions accelerates removal of lubricant from powder metal compacts prior to sintering at high temperature by decomposing lubricant vapors into smaller and more volatile hydrocarbons, produces sintered components with close to soot- and residue-free surfaces and with the desired physical properties, prolongs the life of furnace components including muffles and belts, and reduces downtime, maintenance and operating costs.
A method for removing lubricants from powder metal compacts containing a lubricant used to form said powder metal compacts, comprising the steps of:
A method of removing lubricants from powder metal compacts treated by heating in a continuous sintering furnace having a pre-heating zone and a high temperature sintering zone through which said compacts move in sequence and wherein said pre-heating and sintering zones are maintained under a protective atmosphere the improvement comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.