[SIS4] Trends and Sustainability of MIM

[15D-SIS4-04] Part Quality, Sustainability, and Performance: A Comparison between Graphite and Metallic Lined MIM Furnaces

*S. Hishiyama², T. Ohnweiler¹, M. Mungenast¹, T. Ohba², K. Shimamura² (1.Carbolite Gero GmbH and Co. KG, Germany, 2.Verder Scientific Co., Ltd., Japan)

キーワード：Metal Injection Moulding, Quality, Sustainability, Furnaces

In Metal Injection Moulding (MIM) two different types of batch furnaces are available: Either furnaces with a heating cassette made from graphite or from metallic materials such as tungsten or molybdenum. Metallic furnaces offer the best possible purity of the atmosphere, such as Argon, Nitrogen, Hydrogen or (high) vacuum. The running costs and the energy consumption are comparably high. Graphite furnaces result in a reduced energy consumption. However, those furnaces inevitably result in carbon particulates being present in the furnace atmosphere during heat treatment. This results in a coloration of the surface of metallic parts, but also in modified carbon content. This study reports on the parts quality and on the energy and resource consumption for both kinds of furnaces for a typical batch type production process.