ADVANTAGES OF POWDER METALLURGY
1. The processes of powder metallurgy are quite and clean.
2. Articles of any intricate or complicated shape can be manufactured.
3. The dimensional accuracy and surface finish obtainable are much better for many applications and hence machining can be eliminated.
4. Unlike casting, press forming machining, no material is being wasted as scrap and the process makes utilizes full raw material.
5. Hard to process materials such as diamond can be converted into usable components and tools through this process.
6. High production rates can be easily achieved.
7. The phase diagram constraints, which do not allow an alloy formation between mutually insoluble constituents in liquid state, such as in case of copper and lead are removed in this process and mixtures of such metal powders can be easily processed and shaped through this process.
8. This process facilitates production of many such parts, which cannot be produced through other methods, such as sintered carbides and self-lubricating bearings.
9. The process enables an effective control over several properties such as purity, density, porosity, particle size, etc., in the parts produced through this process.
10. The components produced by this process are highly pure and bears longer life.
11. It enables production of parts from such alloys, which possess poor cast ability.
12. It is possible to ensure uniformity of composition, since exact proportions of constituent metal powders can be used.
13. The preparation and processing of powdered iron and nonferrous parts made in this way exhibit good properties, which cannot be produced in any other way.
14. Simple shaped parts can be made to size with 100 micron accuracy without waste.
15. Porous parts can be produced that could not be made in any other way.
16. Parts with wide variations in compositions and materials can be produced.
17. Structure and properties can be controlled more closely than in other fabricating processes.
18. Highly qualified or skilled labor is not required. in powder metallurgy process.
19. Super-hard cutting tool bits, which are impossible to produce by other manufacturing processes, can be easily manufactured using this process.
20. Components shapes obtained possess excellent reproducibility.
21. Control of grain size, relatively much uniform structure and defect such voids and blowholes in structure can be eliminated.
Source Introduction of Basic Manufacturing Processes and Workshop Technology by Rajender Singh.
