PM2010 World Congress: Special Interest Seminars focus on new markets for Powder Metallurgy

A series of special interest seminars form a valuable addition to the technical programme of the PM2010 World Congress and Exhibition, taking place in Florence next month. The seminars, open to all registered congress delegates, look at new opportunities for structural PM components, metal injection moulded (MIM) products and hard materials, as well as focussing on the outlook for the hot isostatic pressing (HIP) industry.

Seminar overviews are detailed below. For the latest programme information visit the EPMA World PM website, www.epma.com/pm_2010/home2.htm

 Powder Metallurgy: Beyond the internal combustion engine

Special Interest Seminar, Thursday 14 October, 09.00–12.30

Chairmen: Professor Detlev Stoever, Forschungszentrum Juelich GmbH, Germany & Dr Mark Dougan, AMES SA, Spain

Increasing fuel costs and more stringent exhaust emission standards are the main driving forces for car manufacturers worldwide to optimise existing technologies to reduce fuel consumption, as well as to develop new driving concepts not based on the combustion of fossil fuels.

Today, widespread activities have been initiated ranging from weight reduction and reduced friction of established components up to the market launch of new car concepts based on hybrid propulsion or complete electrification. In this seminar, the following question will be discussed from different perspectives: to what extent powder metallurgy will still be able to play an important role in these new car concepts?

Additionally, the discussion will be complemented by a more general view on the potentials of powder metallurgy in other future energy storage and conversion systems concepts such as batteries and fuel cells. In these applications, the suitable combination of powder metallurgy with ceramic or polymer technology is the key to function. Planned presentations include:

• Traction Motor with an Integrated Permanent Magnetic Gear
  
  Professor Peter Omand Rasmussen, Aalborg University

• Electro Mechanical Steering Systems and the Application of Powder Metal Components
  
  Dipl.-Ing Christof Lausser, Dipl.-Ing Karsten Hinsch,TRW Automotive Tech Center Düsseldorf

• Waste Heat Recovery by Thermoelectric Generators in Automotive Applications
  
  Dr Christian Stiewe, Dr R Hassdorf, Dr Eckhard Müller, Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt DLR eV

• Cutting-Edge Manufacturing Technologies For Solid Oxide Fuel Cells And Batteries
  
  Dr Hans Peter Buchkremer, Dr Martin Bram, Dr Norbert H menzler, Dr Sven Uhlenbruck, Dr Frank Tietz, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH

• Industrialization of P/M chromium based interconnects for SOFC systems
  
  Klaus Rissbacher, Dr Andreas Venskutonis, Dr Lorenz Sigl, Plansee SE, Austria 

 Developments in the worldwide HIP industry

Special Interest Seminar, Thursday morning, 14 October, 09.00 – 12.30

Chairman: Sture Olsson, Avure Technologies, Sweden

The manufacturing of near net shape (NNS) powder metal (PM) components by Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIP) has been used commercially for 20 years. The availability of high quality metal powders combined with a cost-effective HIP process has made it possible to produce fully dense NNS items and complex geometry components offering an attractive set of properties at reduced cost.

The annual world production of PM HIP NNS parts is expected to double from 2008 to 2013, from an annual level of 5,000 to 10,000 tons. Recent investments within the HIP community will during the year 2010 itself generate an added HIP capacity in the order of 15,000 tons.

This Special Interest Session will focus at the status and the current trends of the Developments in the Worldwide PM HIP industry with overviews from Europe, America and Asia. In addition, the need and base for standardization efforts for PM HIP components will be discussed. Planned presentations include:

• Welcome and Introduction
• The formation of EPHG, the European PM HIP Group
  
  Adeline Riou, Erasteel & Co-chairman EPHG and Jonathan Wroe, President EPMA

• Improvements in Product Quality and Reliability with HIP Powder Stainless Steels
  
  Rob Mitchell, Engineering Specialist, Rolls-Royce, UK

• Growth and Development of HIP PM Products at Surahammar, Sweden
  
  Magnus Cedergren; Stephen Mashl; Kristin Peterson (Bodycote HIP)

• HIP Capacity Growth in Asia
  
  Takao Fujikawa, Metal Technology Co., Japan, Chairman, HIP/CIP Committee, JSPPM

• State of Isostatic Pressing (HIP & CIP) in North America
  
  Dennis Poor, Kittyhawk Products, USA , President of IPA, the Isostatic Processing Association

• PM HIP Standardization – Possibilities and Hurdles
  
  Linn Larsson, Sandvik Powdermet, Sweden

• Discussion and Closing remarks from Sture Olsson

 Hard Materials: Beyond traditional tungsten carbide

Special Interest Seminar, Thursday morning, 14 October

Chairmen: Dr Henk van den Berg, Kennametal Technologies, Germany & Dr Zhigang Fang, University of Utah, USA

Traditional tungsten carbide based hardmetals are the most widely used industrial tool materials for metal machining, mining, oil and gas drilling, construction, and all other engineering components requiring exceptional wear resistance.

The demand of modern manufacturing industry, however, increasingly pushes the limit of the capability of traditional tungsten carbide based hardmetals. A variety of other hard and superhard materials fulfil the needs of many special applications complementing the large utility of hardmetals and completing the class of tool materials as a whole.

With the growing market of special applications hence the needs for special tool materials, the advances in “hard materials beyond traditional hardmetals” has merged as an area with great potential as well as challenges, which are therefore the focus of this special interests session (SIS). Materials covered in this SIS include but not limited to: ceramics, cermets, superhard materials, alternative binders for hardmetals, and hardmetals with gradient microstructure.

The objective of this Special Interest Seminar is to provide a forum presenting the state-of-the-art technologies in the development and applications of these hard materials. Planned presentations include:

• An Overview of Technology and Markets for Cutting Tools and Wear Resistant Materials
  
  Mark Greenfield and Henk van den Berg, Kennametal, Inc., US/Germany

• Ceramic Cutting Tool Materials and Applications
  
  Stefan Holzer, Kennametals Technologies GmbH

• Recent Advances in Cermet Materials and Industrial Applications
  
  S. Kang, Seoul National University, Korea

• Superhard Materials and Their Application
  
  J. Dan Belnap, Smith Megadiamond, USA

• Alternative Binder Materials for Hardmetals
  
  W. Lengauer, Vienna Technology University, Austria

• Functionally Graded Hardmetals and Manufacturing Processes
  
  Z. Zak Fang, University of Utah, USA

 A global view on Metal Injection Moulding: Case studies from Asia, Europe and North America

Special Interest Seminar, Thursday morning, 14 October, 09.00 – 12.30

Chairmen: Dr Frank Petzoldt, Fraunhofer IFAM, Germany, Dr Bruno Vicenzi, Mimitalia, Italy & Professor Hideshi Miura, Kumamoto University, Japan

With the economy slowly but gradually recovering from the very difficult position of 2009, the Metal Injection Moulding industry is now dealing with changed scenarios. Suppliers, competitors and customers have changed if not disappeared, and in some cases markets have been largely affected.

With the occasion of the World Congress, the MIM community will meet in Florence and this Special Interest Seminar will be a chance to discuss an issue that is central to the business: real commercial MIM parts, i.e. case studies of interesting manufacturing examples. In order to give a good cross section, case studies of parts will be presented from the three main manufacturing (and market) areas, that will be, in alphabetical order, Asia, Europe and North America.

All talks will be given by industry experts and there will be time for discussion among the audience and with the speakers, so that the participants may be able to obtain a global view of the Metal Injection Moulding business. Planned presentations include:

• Non-Medical MIM Applications in North America
  
  Matt Bulger (NetShape Technologies – MIM)

• Powder Injection Molding in Medical Applications: Case Studies from Several PIM Companies in USA
  
  Animesh Bose (Trigon Advanced Materials)

• Highly precise MIM mechanical part of the quartz watch by SUS316L micro grain powder
  
  Tomo Takahashi (MIM Development & Technical Department/EPSON ATMIX Corp).,

• Dental Applications of Micro PIM
  
  Young-Sam Kwon (CetaTech Inc) and Seong Jin Park (POSTECH)

• Case Studies from EuroMIM companies
  
  Bruno Vicenzi (MIMITALIA srl)

• Advantages of MIM Technology in Competition of Shaping Procedures
  
  Ingolf Langer, Ralf W.-E. Stein (Schunk Sintermetalltechnik GmbH, Thale, Germany)