Whirlpool S.a.

Universidade Federal De Santa Catarina (Ufsc)

Lupatech S.a.

Embraco-Industria De Compressores E Solucoes Em Refrigeracao, Ltda.

Universidade Federal De Santa Catarina

Gisele Hammes

Aloisio Nelmo Klein

Cristiano Binder

Roberto Binder

Moises Luiz Parucker

Waldyr Ristow Junior

Thiago De Souza Lamim

Moisés Luiz Parucker

Euclides Alexandre Bernardelli

The metallurgical composition comprises a main particulate metallic material, for example iron or nickel, and at least one alloy element for hardening the main metallic material, which form a structural matrix; a particulate solid lubricant, such as graphite, hexagonal boron nitride or mixture thereof; and a particulate alloy element which is capable of forming, during the sintering of the composition conformed by compaction or by injection molding, a liquid phase, agglomerating the solid lubricant in discrete particles. The composition may comprise an alloy component to stabilize the alpha-iron matrix phase, during the sintering, in order to prevent the graphite solid lubricant from being solubilized in the iron. The invention further refers to the process for obtaining a self-lubricating sintered product.

Composition of particulate materials and process for obtaining self-lubricating sintered products

The plasma reactor comprises a reaction chamber () connectable to a source of ionizable gases () and to a heating device (), said reactor () being subjected to the phases of heating (A), cleaning (L) and/or surface treatment (S), cooling (R), unloading (D) and loading (C) of metallic pieces (). The installation comprises: at least two reactors (), each being selectively and alternately connected to: the same source of ionizable gases (); the same vacuum source (); the same electrical energy source (); and to the same heating device (), the latter being displaceable between operative positions, in each of which surrounding laterally and superiorly a respective reactor (), while the latter is in its heating phase (A) and cleaning phase (L) and/or in the surface treatment phase (S) of the metallic pieces ().

Installation and process for the treatment of metallic pieces by a plasma reactor

The metallurgical composition includes a main particulate metallic material, for example iron or nickel, and at least one alloy element for hardening the main metallic material, which form a structural matrix; a particulate solid lubricant, such as graphite, hexagonal boron nitride or mixture thereof; and a particulate alloy element which is capable of forming, during the sintering of the composition conformed by compaction or by injection molding, a liquid phase, agglomerating the solid lubricant in discrete particles. The composition may include an alloy component to stabilize the alpha-iron matrix phase, during the sintering, in order to prevent the graphite solid lubricant from being solubilized in the iron. The invention further refers to a self-lubricating sintered product, obtained from the composition, and to the process for obtaining said product.

Metallurgical composition of particulate materials, self-lubricating sintered products and process for obtaining self-lubricating sintered products

The plasma reactor defines a reaction chamber provided with a support for the metallic pieces and an anode-cathode system, and a heating means is mounted externally to said plasma reactor. The plasma process, for a cleaning operation, includes the steps of connecting the support to the grounded anode and the cathode to a negative potential of a power source; feeding an ionizable gaseous charge into the reaction chamber and heating the latter at vaporization temperatures of piece contaminants; applying an electrical discharge to the cathode; and providing the exhaustion of the gaseous charge and contaminants. A subsequent heat treatment includes the steps of: inverting the energization polarity of the anode-cathode system; feeding a new gaseous charge to the reaction chamber and maintaining it heated; applying an electrical discharge to the cathode; and exhausting the gaseous charge from the reaction chamber.

Plasma process and reactor for treating metallic pieces

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Florianopolis, Brazil

Gisele Hammes