Spray Drying
Elmet Technologies utilizes advanced spray drying techniques, a critical process in the additive manufacturing of refractory metal powders. This technique transforms a liquid slurry of metal particles into uniform, spherical powders through precise heat transfer, evaporation, and mass diffusion. The resulting powders are highly flowable and exhibit excellent packing density, making them ideal for the demanding requirements of additive manufacturing. By producing consistently shaped particles, this process ensures superior layer deposition and sintering performance, which are crucial for producing high-quality 3D-printed components.
It offers exceptional versatility for refractory metal manufacturers, making it a key process in additive manufacturing. This technique precisely tailors powders for specific methods, such as laser-powder bed fusion and binder jetting. To enhance performance, you can apply optional plasma densification to create fully dense particles, improving mechanical properties and resistance to extreme conditions. By producing powders with uniform morphology and controlled particle size distributions, spray drying plays a crucial role in advancing the precision, reliability, and overall effectiveness of additive manufacturing with refractory metals.
Additive Manufacturing Spray Drying
- Spray Drying and Plasma Melting Expertise
- Combines spray drying of a powder slurry into spheres with plasma melting to create fully dense spheres.
- Process Overview
- Involves heat transfer to solids via convection.
- Includes evaporation, internal diffusion of water vapor, and external mass transfer by convection.
- Applications of Spray-Dried Powders
- Spray-dried powders can be plasma melted for densification.
- Alternatively, they can be combined with organic binders for Ready-To-Press (RTP) applications, tailored to specific requirements.
The key to superior Powder Performance
Spray drying offers a reliable solution to achieve consistent, flowable powders ideal for additive laser-powder bed fusion. This advanced process transforms powders for better handling and more predictable performance in your applications.
Plasma Densification Process
Plasma Densification at Elmet Technologies
- A critical process for producing high-quality powders for additive manufacturing, especially in refractory metals.
- Utilizes advanced internal plasma melting technology with temperatures up to 20,000 degrees.
- Ensures full densification of powder spheres
- Enhances physical properties of powders to meet the rigorous demands of modern manufacturing applications.
High-Performance Powders for Precise 3D Printing
We specialize in delivering premium powders tailored for Laser-Powder Bed Fusion, through our advanced spray drying process. We create spherical particles with uniform size, ensuring exceptional flowability and precise layer deposition. This results in enhanced process efficiency, reduced production disruptions, and dependable performance to meet the rigorous demands of AM.