Al-CuO is a thermite material exhibiting the exothermic reaction only when aluminum melts. For wide spread of its application, the reaction temperature needs to be reduced in addition to the enhancement of total reaction energy. In the present study, a thermite nanocomposite with a large contact area between Al and CuO was fabricated in order to lower the exothermic reaction temperature and to improve the reactivity. A cryomilling process was performed to achieve the nanostructure, and the effect of composition on the microstructure and its reactivity was studied in detail. The microstructure was characterized using SEM and XRD, and the thermal property was analyzed using DSC. The results show that as the molar ratio between Al and CuO varies, the fraction of uniform nanocomposite structure was changed affecting the exothermic reaction characteristics.

Pre-alloyed Astaloy CrLTM (Fe-1.5 wt% Cr-0.2 wt% Mo), a commercial Fe-based alloy powder for high strength powder metallurgy products, was sintered and hot forged with additions of 0.5 wt% C and 0~2 wt% Cu. To investigate the influence of various Cu contents, the microstructural evolution was characterized using density measurements, scanning electron microscope (SEM) and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD). Transverse rupture strength (TRS) was measured for each composition and processing stage. The correlation between Cu additions and properties of sinter-forged Fe-Cr-Mo-C alloy was discussed in detail.

The objective of the present research is to develop the novel multi-compaction technology to produce hybrid structure in powder metallurgy (P/M) components using dissimilar Fe-based alloys. Two distinct powder alloys with different compositions were are used in this study: Fe-Cr-Mo-C pre-alloyed powder for high strength and Fe-Cu-C mixed powder for enhanced machinability and lower material cost. Initially, Fe-Cu-C was pre-compacted using a bar-shaped die with lower compaction pressure. The green compact of Fe-Cu-C alloy was inserted into a die residing a half of the die, and another half of the die was filled with the Fe-Cr-Mo-C powder. Then they subsequently underwent re-compaction with higher pressure. The final compact was sintered at 1120°C for 60 min. In order to determine the mechanical behavior, transverse rupture strength (TRS) and Vickers hardness of sintered materials were measured and correlated with density variations. The microstructure was characterized using optical microscope and scanning electron microscope to investigate the interfacial characteristics between dissimilar P/M alloys.

In this paper, we have studied the evolution of morphology and brazing behavior of Ag-28Cu alloy filler processed by high energy ball milling. The milling of the powder mixture was carried out for 40 h. The structural and morphological analyses were performed by the X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. The melting temperature of the braze filler was determined by differential thermal analysis. The filler wetting properties were assessed from the spread area ratio measurements on various Ti substrates. The results indicate that the ball milling can effectively depress the filler melting point and enhance the brazeability. The milled powder mixture showed Ag(Cu) solid solution with a crystallite size of 174-68 nm after 40 h. It was shown that the high energy ball milling can be a potential method to develop low temperature brazing fillers for advanced microjoining applications.

In this study, we have developed Sn-Ag alloy by a simple high energy ball milling technique. We have ball-milled the eutectic mixture of Sn and Ag powders for a period of 45 h. The milled powder for 45 h was characterized for particle size and morphology. Microstructural investigations were carried out by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction studies. The melting behavior of 45 h milled powder was studied by differential scanning calorimetry. The resultant crystallite size of the Sn(Ag) solid solution was found to be 85 nm. The melting point of the powder was 213.6oC after 45 h of milling showing depression of ≈6oC in melting point as compared to the existing Sn-3.5Ag alloys. It was also reported that the wettability of the Sn-3.5Ag powder was significantly improved with an increase in milling time up to 45 h due to the nanocrystalline structure of the milled powder.

In the past few years, overhead copper transmission lines have been replaced by lightweight aluminum transmission lines to minimize the cost and prevent the sagging of heavier copper transmission lines. High strength aluminum alloys are used as the core of the overhead transmission lines because of the low strength of the conductor line. However, alloying copper with aluminum causes a reduction in electrical conductivity due to the solid solution of each component. Therefore, in this study, the authors attempt to study the effect of various Al/Cu ratios (9:1, 7:3, 5:5) to obtain a high strength Al-Cu alloy without a significant loss in its conductivity through powder metallurgy. Low-temperature extrusion of Al/Cu powder was done at 350ºC to minimize the alloying reactions. The as-extruded microstructure was analyzed and various phases (Cu9Al4, CuAl2) were determined. The tensile strength and electrical conductivity of different mixing ratios of Al and Cu powders were studied. The results suggest that the tensile strength of samples is improved considerably while the conductivity falls slightly but lies within the limits of applications.