Cold spray as a Powder Metallurgy process for the production of nickel aluminium bronze
March 5, 2025
Australian researchers from SPEE3D, headquartered in Melbourne, and Charles Darwin University, Darwin, Australia, have published a paper in PLOS One focused on the use of Cold Spray Additive Manufacturing in the production of nickel aluminium bronze (NAB) alloys over the traditional Powder Metallurgy technique.
In the study, both binary aluminium bronze (AB) and NAB alloys were produced using powders, additively manufacturing components via cold spray and then heat treating the resultant parts. The AB alloy contained blended 9.9% aluminium alloy (Al6061) powder and copper powder, while the NAB alloy included 11% Al6061 powder, 5.8% nickel powder, 6.8% iron powder, and copper powder.
Powders were mixed under controlled conditions and deposited using a LightSPEE3D AM machine and compressed air. Post-deposition heat treatments – such as homogenisation, ageing, and/or Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIP) – were applied to enhance material properties.
According to the researchers, their results showed that Cold Spray Additive Manufacturing combined with suitable heat treatments can produce NAB alloys with desirable microstructures containing fine κ phases and mechanical properties with above 280 MPa yield strength, above 500 MPa tensile strength and 20% elongation. This dataset is comparable to numbers achieved by traditional cast methods – which results in yield strength of 240 MPa, tensile strength of 580 MPa and 15% elongation – and better results than those produced via PM.
The study also noted that replacing solution treatment at HIP process at 1035°C can further enhance the mechanical properties of NAB samples produced via Cold Spray Additive Manufacturing, making them superior to traditionally cast NAB materials. This highlights the potential of cold spray AM to produce high-performance materials more efficiently.
‘Cold spray as a Powder Metallurgy process for the production of nickel aluminium bronze’ is available here, in full.
