Rapid manufacture of Ni-based superalloy components by three-dimensional printing

The challenge to rapid manufacturing high performance metal components is how to consolidate the uncompressed powder preforms to full or near full density without shape distortion. A new approach developed by ProMetal was proposed, in which a bimodal powder, typically a coarse prealloyed powder blended with a fine metal powder was used to build green preforms by three-dimensional printing and then sintered at a temperature above the solidus temperature of the coarse prealloyed powder and below the melting temperature of the fine powder particles or the solidus temperature if the fine powder is a prealloyed powder as well. This approach was successfully applied to sinter Ni-based superalloy 718 preforms, which were built through three dimensional printing into near full density.