Characteristics and Advantages of Isostatic Pressing Process

Isostatic Pressing Process

In the isostatic pressing process, products are put in the closed container full of liquid and applied the equal pressure to each surface to increase their density under high pressure, thus getting the required shapes. With the progress of science and technology, isostatic presses are widely used in the forming of high-temperature refractory, ceramics, cemented carbide, lanthanon permanent magnet, carbon material and rare metal powder.

Characteristics of Isostatic Pressing Process

· Isostatic press is used to make the base. The density of the base is high and even. The sintering shrinkage is small, and it is not easy to deform.

· Long and thin rodlike or tube-shaped bases which are difficult to be made with a conventional molding process.

· The products are of high strength and excellent machinability, greatly reducing the internal stress.

· Mould can easily be made, with long service life and lower cost.

· The compactions with large size are available, multiple compactions can be made in each cylinder.

Isostatic pressing has several benefits over the commonly used press and sinter method, including equal compaction in all directions and a more uniform final component density. Nevertheless, as with other powder metallurgy processes, manufacturers must carefully characterize the metal powder’s properties for the process to be successful. Commonly characterized physical properties include powder flow, density, hardness, particle size, and particle shape of the respective powders.

Other key characteristics include chemistry and microstructure. Chemistry is paramount as the powder needs to comply with the alloy composition of the material specified, while phase composition and grain size can affect powder hardness and melt behavior which can affect the forming and sintering process.