Method for producing metal powder

Abstract

To produce metal powder having various shapes.SOLUTION: A projecting pattern is formed by pressing a working die to a raw material, and the projecting pattern is cut off by a cutting tool to produce metal powder.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1B

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The following disclosure relates to a method for producing powders from metal materials. [Background technology]

[0002] Metal powders are required for several industrial applications. The particle size, shape, and other physical and chemical properties required for the powder vary depending on the application. Powders are produced by known methods such as atomization, ball milling, and oxide reduction, depending on the required physical and chemical properties. Patent Document 1 discloses one production method that utilizes a mechanical process. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2023 / 148980 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In many manufacturing methods, the shape of the powder produced is random or unique to each method. When a specific shape is required, it is necessary to further select the produced powder or further shape the obtained powder using another method. According to the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1, by cutting multiple convex portions aligned in one direction, it is possible to easily produce powder with shapes that were previously difficult to obtain, but it does not make other shapes possible. The technology disclosed below offers new possibilities for shape control, as long as the shape is achievable using a processing mold. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] A protruding pattern is formed by pressing a processing mold against a material, and the protruding pattern is then removed with a cutting tool to produce metal powder. [Effects of the Invention]

[0006] Powders of various shapes can be produced, as long as the shape is feasible in the processing mold. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1A] FIG. 1A is a schematic cross-sectional elevation view illustrating a step of pressing a processing die against a material. [Figure 1B] FIG. 1B is a schematic cross-sectional elevation view illustrating the step of cutting the cutting tool. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional elevation view illustrating a powder manufacturing method according to another embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional elevation view illustrating a powder manufacturing method according to yet another embodiment. [Figure 4A] FIG. 4A is a schematic perspective view illustrating an example of a recessed pattern on a processing mold. [Figure 4B] FIG. 4B is a schematic perspective view illustrating an example of a convex pattern formed on a metal material by a concave pattern. [Figure 5A] FIG. 5A is a schematic perspective view illustrating an example of a groove on an auxiliary rolling roller. [Figure 5B] FIG. 5B is a schematic perspective view illustrating an example of a groove on a rolling roller to be combined with an auxiliary rolling roller. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional elevation view showing the positional relationship between the convex pattern and the blade. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view of the powder produced by cutting out the convex pattern. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] Some exemplary embodiments will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be particularly noted that the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, and therefore the dimensional relationships between the drawings are not limited to those shown. Throughout the following description and the appended claims, and for the sake of convenience, top, bottom, left, and right are distinguished, but embodiments in which the structure is flipped and rotated as desired are possible.

[0009] 1A and 1B, a raw material 1 for producing metal powder is made of the metal and is, for example, a flat-plate-shaped ingot. Such raw material 1 can be produced by any method, such as casting or sintering. In particular, in the case of alloys, the metal ingot may be produced so as to have a desired composition from the beginning, or the desired composition may be achieved by melt-impregnating a lump of one metal with another metal.

[0010] Although the processing mold 3 is depicted in FIG. 1A as being flat, its shape is not necessarily limited, and it has a recessed pattern 5 at least on the surface facing the material 1. The recessed pattern 5 can be formed on the processing mold 3, for example, by machining the processing mold 3, or alternatively or in addition to machining, laser processing can be used. Alternatively, the recessed pattern 5 can be formed by transferring it from another mold. Furthermore, the processing mold 3 can be formed by arranging small pieces prepared separately from the processing mold 3 on the processing mold 3. In any case, the processing mold 3 must have sufficient hardness and strength at least on the surface having the recessed pattern 5 so that it can maintain its shape in the subsequent pressing step. Therefore, the entire processing mold 3 may be made of a material having sufficient hardness and strength, or only the surface having the recessed pattern 5 may be subjected to a hardening treatment such as nitriding or carbonization, or a coating may be used.

[0011] By pressing the processing mold 3 against the material 1 as shown by arrow 7 and slightly plastically deforming it, a convex pattern 9 is formed on the material 1. As illustrated in FIGS. 4A and 4B, the convex pattern 9 is complementary to the concave pattern 5. If the concave pattern 5 is an arrangement of quadrangular pyramidal recesses as illustrated, the convex pattern 9 will necessarily be an arrangement of quadrangular pyramidal protrusions. Needless to say, the concave pattern 5 is not limited to a quadrangular pyramid shape, and any shape can be selected as long as it is a shape that can be produced. Conversely, a convex pattern 9 of any shape can be realized on the material 1.

[0012] 1B, the blade 11 of the cutting tool is caused to cut into the material 1 parallel to the surface of the material including the raised pattern 9, as indicated by arrow 13. The material 1 may be fixed and the blade 11 moved, or the material 1 may be moved toward the blade 11, or a combination thereof may be used. Referring to FIG. 6, the depth D to which the blade 11 cuts is appropriately controlled. Preferably, the depth D of the blade 11 is controlled to be the same as or shallower than the height H of the raised pattern 9.

[0013] The convex pattern 9 is scraped off with a cutting tool, and as shown in Fig. 7, powder 19 having a shape derived from the convex pattern 9 can be collected. By forming in advance in the processing mold 3 a concave pattern 5 of an appropriate shape according to the desired powder shape, the desired powder shape can ultimately be obtained.

[0014] Needless to say, the process of pressing the processing mold 3 against the material 1 and the process of cutting with the blade 11 can be carried out repeatedly. Since the amount of plastic deformation and the amount of material 1 that is cut away each time are small, a large number of repetitions are possible. Furthermore, the material 1 can be firmly supported on its back surface while maintaining a flat shape, and the blade 11 cuts parallel to the surface, so there is no need to press the material 1 strongly in the thickness direction, so deformation of the material 1 is not an issue. In other words, it is possible to repeatedly produce powder 19 until the material 1 becomes considerably thin. This embodiment contributes to sustainable consumption and production by eliminating waste of the material 1.

[0015] The above-described apparatus and process can be modified in various ways. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the processing mold may be a rolling roller 3A. The peripheral surface of the rolling roller 3A can be previously engraved with a recessed pattern 5 similar to that described above. When the rolling roller 3A is pressed down in the direction of arrow 7A, which is perpendicular to the surface of the raw material 1, and rotated around its axis, the raw material 1 is fed out in the direction of arrow 15, which is perpendicular to the pressing direction. At this time, a protruding pattern 9 corresponding to the recessed pattern 5 is formed on the surface of the raw material 1 and is extruded. By cutting with a blade 11, powder 19 can be produced in the same manner as described above. Needless to say, the cutting of the blade 11 can be achieved by utilizing the feed of the raw material 1 by the rolling roller 3A (arrow 15) instead of, or in addition to, moving the blade 11.

[0016] The rolling roller 3A can also be rotated in the reverse direction, allowing the material 1 to reciprocate. Since the raised pattern 9 is formed on the material 1 in both the forward and reverse rotations, powder 19 can be produced in both directions. For this purpose, a cutting tool (not shown in Figure 2) can also be provided on the left side.

[0017] Furthermore, the rolling roller 3A is not limited to being used on one side of the material 1, but can also be used on the back side. The example shown in FIG. 2 is equipped with a rolling roller 3B, which may be pressed in the direction of the upward arrow 7B, and in combination with the rolling roller 3A, symmetrically sandwiches the material 1. Needless to say, the rolling roller 3B may also be provided with a recessed pattern 5, so that a raised pattern 9 is also formed on the back side of the material 1, and similarly, powder 19 can be produced by the blade 11. Furthermore, in this example, the material 1 can be reciprocated by counter-rotating the rolling rollers 3A and 3B. These contribute to improving productivity in producing powder 19.

[0018] 3, auxiliary rolling rollers may be further provided to form a tandem rolling mill. The auxiliary rolling rollers 3C and 3D are disposed adjacent to the rolling rollers 3A and 3B in the direction in which the raw material 1 is fed (arrow 15), and can rotate while being pressed down synchronously (arrows 7C and 7D), thereby forming a raised pattern 9 on the raw material 1 while feeding it (arrow 15). Needless to say, in this example, the raw material 1 may also be reciprocated, or powder 19 may be produced by both reciprocating and reciprocating.

[0019] The recessed pattern 5 may be formed only on the rolling rollers 3A and 3B, or may also be formed on the auxiliary rolling rollers 3C and 3D. Furthermore, the patterns formed on the rolling rollers 3A and 3B and the auxiliary rolling rollers 3C and 3D do not have to be the same; the raised pattern 9 may be realized by combining different patterns. For example, the rolling rollers 3A and 3B may be formed with multiple grooves 5A as shown in FIG. 5A, and the auxiliary rolling rollers 3C and 3D may be formed with grooves 5B oriented in a different direction from the grooves 5A as shown in FIG. 5B. This combination of grooves 5A and 5B is equivalent to the recessed pattern 5, and ultimately forms a raised pattern 9 on the blank 1 similar to that shown in FIG. 4B. While the recessed pattern 5 shown in FIG. 4A cannot be formed by machining without complex processes, the grooves 5A and 5B can be realized by relatively simple machining. In other words, this embodiment is advantageous in that it facilitates the fabrication of a processing mold.

[0020] In the above explanation, a vise or similar cutting tool was used as the premise, but of course it is not limited to this and any tool capable of cutting can be used, including rotary tools such as grinding wheels and milling cutters. The use of rotary tools is effective in improving productivity.

[0021] As can be easily understood from the above description, according to the above-described embodiment, metal powder of any shape can be easily produced as long as a processing mold can be produced. Powder production can be repeated until the material becomes considerably thin, which can reduce material waste and also contribute to improving productivity by utilizing reciprocating motion.

[0022] Although several embodiments have been described, modifications or variations of the embodiments can be made based on the above disclosure. [Explanation of symbols]

[0023] 1. Materials 3 Processing type 3A,3B,3C,3D rolling roller 5. Concave pattern 5A,5B Groove 9 Convex pattern 11 blades 19 powder H Height D Depth

Claims

1. A method for producing powder from a metal material, comprising: pressing a processing die having a recessed pattern onto one or more surfaces of the material to form a raised pattern on the surface that is complementary to the recessed pattern; cutting a cutting tool blade into the material parallel to the surface including the convex pattern so as to extract the convex pattern as the powder; A method comprising:

2. The pressing step and the cutting step are repeated.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

3. The processing mold is provided with a rolling roller that can press down in a direction perpendicular to the surface, and the rolling roller is rotated to feed the material in a direction parallel to the surface.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

4. The rolling rollers are rotated in opposite directions to reciprocate the material.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the processing mold is capable of pressing down in a direction perpendicular to the surface and includes an auxiliary rolling roller arranged in tandem with the rolling roller, the rolling roller and the auxiliary rolling roller each having grooves different from each other, and the combination of the grooves is configured to form the convex pattern on the surface.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein in the cutting step, the blade is controlled to be shallower than the height of the raised pattern.

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