Novel Cold Crucible Ultrasonic Atomization Powder Production Method for 3D Printing

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Powder Metallurgy
• Additive Manufacturing

Background:

• Developing novel alloys for additive manufacturing (AM) requires efficient powder production methods.
• Existing techniques can be slow or yield powders with suboptimal characteristics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and evaluate a new ultrasonic atomization method for producing alloy powders.
• To assess the suitability of the produced powders for additive manufacturing applications.

Main Methods:

• An ultrasonically agitated cold crucible system with a 20 kHz ultrasonic sonotrode was employed.
• Materials were melted using an electric arc and atomized via standing wave vibrations.
• Noble and metallic glass alloys were tested, including AMZ4 and tungsten-modified compositions.

Main Results:

• The process yielded powders with exceptional sphericity.
• Powder output suitable for additive manufacturing reached up to 60%.
• AMZ4 powder remained amorphous below 50 μm; tungsten addition induced crystallization across fractions. Minor contamination and Mn/Zn evaporation were noted.

Conclusions:

• The ultrasonic atomization method is a promising tool for producing tailored alloy powders for AM.
• The technique allows control over powder size, structure, and chemical composition.
• Further optimization may mitigate contamination and evaporation issues.