Rapid Tooling Using Powder Injection Molding and Metal Infiltration

Parties Involved:

• Student(s): Open
  Faculty Member(s):  Tom Starr
  Industry Member(s):  Kodak,  Siemens,  Lucent
   

Brief Project Description:

• This project uses the PIM process we developed for molding ceramic parts to form a zirconium diboride (ZrB2) material, to address two matters:
• 1. The fact that electrodes for electrodischarge machining applications are often difficult and expensive to machine.
  2. The tendency that traditional carbon materials used to make electrodes wear too quickly.
• Jennifer Vucic has molded several samples of ZrB2 bars in which we plan to get thorough dimensional characterization of before proceeding with further processing steps.
• ART, a metals company in Buffalo, is interested in working with us to develop this material .
• An inert/reducing atmosphere furnace has been delivered to MSE and is being installed which will allow ust the option of infiltrating here at Georgia Tech.
• Tim Lloyd has been recruited as a student to work on metrology issues and will be performing laser scanning on the bars after each step of the processing.
• This project has been underway since early summer 1997.

Product Properties

Parties Involved: 

Student(s): Kent Dawson 
Faculty Member(s):  John Muzzy,  Jon Colton 
Industry Member(s): 3D Systems,  Durden 
 

Brief Project Description: 
 

• Injection molds are produced quickly and inexpensively, however, these molds cannot accurately represent the final parts' material properties
• Research will focus primarily upon analysis and contrasts of the effect of rapidly prototyped and conventional steel molds, in terms of final part properties.
• The degradation and heat transfer character of sterolithograhpic (SL) composite molds is one of the most important factors considered in this study.
• Geometrically identical steel and composite SL molds producing ASTM standard tesnsile, flexural, and falling dart impact specimens will be studied with atatic and syndiotatic polystyrene. After properties of eacn specimen are measured, heat transfer tests and simulations will be conducted to predict the material properties of the process part from that of its prototype.
• To date, the SL composite mold has been designed, produced, and backfilled with a low melting point alloy.
• 
  Injection molding and mechanical testing should be complete before the new year.