Rockwell Technologies, Inc.

Innovative Technology Licensing LLC

Scott A Schroeder

Hong-Son Ryang

Keiko Anne Halchak

Michael R Mitchell

Brian R Zambrano

Mark R Appleford

A method of directly fabricating metal parts with surface features only requires first preparing a mold of the desired metal part. A powder blend is poured into the mold, which includes a base metal, a lower melting temperature alloy of the base metal, and a polymer binder. The mold containing the powder blend is heated until the polymer binder melts and adheres the metal particles to form a green part. The green part is removed from the mold and placed in a crucible, and loose ceramic powder is packed around the part to support it. The supported green part is then heated as needed to vaporize the binder and consolidate the part via liquid phase sintering. Once cool, the consolidated part can be machined to meet precise dimensional tolerances, if necessary.

Direct metal fabrication of parts with surface features only

A method of strengthening green form parts made from metal powder requires the use of a cross-linkable polymer which, when cross-linking has been induced, retains its mechanical properties to a degree sufficient to prevent fracture or significant deformation of the green form part when subjected to heat sufficient to induce phase transformation and carbonization. The polymer is incorporated into a green form part and cross-linking induced, giving the green part additional strength which enables it to endure the consolidation process without failing. The required polymer can be part of the powder blend used to form the green form part, and induced to cross-link with heat or radiation. Alternatively, the green form part can be dipped in a thermoset resin that cross-links when cured.

Strengthening method for green form parts made from metal powder

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Newbury Park, CA, United States of America

Scott A Schroeder