Sintering Time Dependent Supersolidus Liquid Phase Sintering Behaviour of a Metal Injection Molded Nickel-Base Superalloy

Supersolidus Liquid Phase Sintering of a high refractory metal Ni-based superalloy revealed that the liquid fraction and associated grain growth behaviour was dependent on the time at a given sintering temperature. This also led to a time dependence of part distortion and slumping. An existing SLPS model was modified to account for time dependent densification and distortion and compared to experimental measurements. Model and experimental agreement were very good and indicated no distortion after sintering at 1340 °C for 120 minutes, a transition to distortion after 30 to 45 minutes at 1345 °C and nearly immediate distortion at 1350 °C. These results indicate that a sintering time-temperature processing window can be defined where densification can be maximized without unwanted component distortion.