A new metal injection moulding facility, the first in an Australian university, has recently been commissioned at UQ to undertake research into the use of Metal Injection Moulding (MIM) for materials such as Aluminium and Titanium. MIM is a process in which a fine metal powder, combined with a thermoplastic binder, is injected into a mould, in the same way that plastic injection moulding is undertaken. The resulting 'green' part is then heated to remove the binder material and finally sintered to fully bind the powder particles and densify the part.
The process is particularly suited to small, accurate and complex components in applications that require medium to high production volumes (due to the associated tooling costs), such as electronics, dental, medical, firearms, automotive and aerospace. The final part density can be 98% of the wrought material and the process produces near net shape parts containing many fine and complex features, thus eliminating many downstream finishing operations. Materials available for the MIM process include low alloy, high speed and stainless steels, irons, and cobalt, copper, nickel, tungsten and titanium alloys.
Despite the high levels of shrinkage observed (~20%) the geometry change is highly predictable and isotropic enabling compensation at the tooling design stage. The system can also be run multi-stage using combinations of materials and even joining materials at the sintering stage.
The system recently commissioned at UQ will be used primarily to undertake fundamental research into the use of MIM for Titanium and Ti Aluminide materials, supported by the ARC Centre of Excellence for Design in Light Metals, with particular focus on the materials properties. Whilst MIM has seen extensive adoption in Europe and the US, there are few known applications of it in Australia. The establishment of this laboratory therefore provides Queensland and Australian industries access to world class facilities, capabilities and expertise in this alternative manufacturing process.
For more information or advice, please contact:
Consultant: Sara Eastwood
Phone: +61 7 3364 0700
Email: info@qmisolutions.com.au