Characterisation of nickel alloy powders processed by spark plasma sintering

In this study, nickel alloy powders were consolidated by spark plasma sintering. Experiments were performed between 700 and 750 degrees C temperature range under 50 MPa pressure with holding times from 5 to 10 min. In addition to these main spark plasma sintering parameters three different heating rates ranging from 100 to 235 degrees C min(-1) and two different particle size ranges (75-106 mu m narrow size distribution and -45 mu m wide size distribution) were used for the experiments. After sintering, the sliding wear behaviour of the samples was investigated. The results revealed that the density of the material increased with raising the sintering temperature and holding time. However, heating rate and particle size also played an important role in the densification and these parameters were investigated in detail.