Powder Metallurgy

NSL Analytical provides powder testing services including chemistry, flowability, surface area, particle size distribution, and adsorbed water.

Powder Metallurgy for Part Production

Metal powders are a key feedstock material for several additive manufacturing modalities including laser powder bed fusion, electron beam powder bed fusion, laser blown powder directed energy deposition, and powder bed binder jetting. Each process requires different particle size distributions and some are more sensitive to deviations individual particle shape or agglomerations.

Near net shape parts can also be made using hot isostatic pressing in high pressure furnaces and cans using powder metal input materials in a process called “PM-HIP”. More information on the broad range of powder metallurgy applications for parts production can be found here.

Metal alloy chemistry is also an essential quality control element for industrial powders with narrow chemistry ranges in major alloying elements or light elements such as oxygen and carbon being important to meeting exacting specifications.

NSL has been testing metal powders since the inception of additive manufacturing and the PM-HIP industry. The chemistry of the powders is measured using ICP and LECO as well as the flow and physical characteristics. This is important to the end use applications to ensure that the powder precursors perform as designed when they are manufactured into components in no fail industries.

Powered Metallurgy Coatings

In addition to metal additive manufacturing, powder metals serve as coatings to protect substrates from corrosion, wear, high temperatures, erosion, or abrasion. For some applications, they impart electrical conductivity or electrical insulation. Examples of powder metallurgy coating technologies include thermal spray, weld overlay, or fluidized bed.

NSL Analytical tests powder metallurgy coatings for thickness, adherence, composition, porosity, hardness, and impact strength, and we characterize microstructures via metallography.

NSL Analytical tests powder metallurgy coatings for thickness, adherence, composition, porosity, hardness, and impact strength, and we characterize microstructures via metallography. We also test for specific characteristics of the coatings, such as electrical conductivity or high-temperature resistance.

Accreditations & Approvals for Powder Metallurgy

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NSL Analytical Tests Metal Powders

NSL Analytical analyzes metal powders for customers who want to be sure that the powder they received from a supplier has the correct chemistry, particle size distribution, and physical and mechanical properties they ordered. We test finished components for hardness, impact resistance, tensile strength, and density. We analyze specimens via metallography for correct microstructure, and perform other tests depending on the specific service environment and function of the part.

Test Method	Properties Measured
Metallography	Microstructure, particle size, particle size distribution, composite reinforcements
Scanning electron microscope (SEM)	Combined imaging and elemental analysis
Chemistry	Fillers, binders, contaminants
Rockwell, Brinell, Microhardness	Hardness
Charpy	Impact strength
Stress rupture	Time to failure under a specified overload
Inductively coupled plasma/mass spectrometry (ICP/MS)	Trace elements identification and amounts
X-ray fluorescence	Elemental composition
Image analysis	Particle size and shape

Powder Metallurgy