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283 - A High-Performance Ni-based Superalloy for Extreme Environment Applications
Harikrishnan Rajendran, The Boeing Company

ATI 1700 ^(TM) is a high-performance, nickel-based superalloy engineered to enhance the performance of additively manufactured components for extreme environments. The alloy delivers exceptional strength at temperatures approaching 1,800 °F, outperforming many other nickel-based superalloys suitable for additive manufacturing, and demonstrates resistance to strain-age cracking and corrosion as validated during the Boeing DOE-ARPA E HITEMMP program. While initial development focused on additive manufacturing routes, we have expanded the effort by consolidating ATI 1700 ^(TM) powder via hot isostatic pressing and further refining the microstructure through various thermomechanical processes. Preliminary mechanical testing of these PM variants across multiple temperatures has been completed and ongoing testing aims to provide a detailed comparison between powder metallurgy and additively manufactured properties. The efforts support qualification of PM ATI 1700 ^(TM) for extreme environment structural applications.

255 - Effects of Canning Quality on Material Properties of Hot Isostatically Pressed Stainless Steel
Brian Carpman, University of Michigan

Since its inception in the 1950s hot isostatic pressing (HIP) has been a process of choice for high performance materials in medical, nuclear, and aerospace industries. This is because it can make use a wide variety of material feedstocks, allows for near net shape manufacture, and can remove material defects introduced by other processes. However, a constant difficulty in PM-HIP is encapsulation, from design to manufacture to testing. Curiously, there is little data regarding the effects of imperfect can construction or sealing on resulting part quality. In this work we sought to rectify this by investigating the effects of can surface quality and residual encapsulated gas on the mechanical properties of 316L stainless steel. Cans were assembled, surface treated to mimic production conditions, filled with metal powder and various gases, and sealed. After hot isostatic pressing, samples were mechanically tested and metallographically analyzed.

258 - Mechanical and Tribological Properties of PM-HIP Tool Steels: Hardness, Toughness and Wear Resistance
Tomas Berglund, MTC Powder Solutions AB

Powder Metallurgy Hot Isostatic Pressed (PM-HIP) tool steels are critical in applications where wear resistance and mechanical integrity matter. This study compares two grades—A11 and APM2799—highlighting a key takeaway: APM2799 offers exceptional wear resistance under both low- and high-stress abrasion conditions, but at the expense of toughness. Hardness was measured using the Vickers method, toughness through un-notched impact tests and Palmqvist fracture toughness, and wear resistance using the ASTM G65 abrasion test alongside a modified high-stress variant. While APM2799 significantly outperforms A11 in wear resistance, its lower toughness underscores the trade-off between durability and fracture resistance in PM-HIP tool steels. These results provide valuable guidance for material selection in applications where wear dominates performance requirements.

053- Influence of Process Parameters During Hardening on the Microstructure of Powder Metallurgical High-Speed Steel
Stefan Müller, Ruhr-University Bochum

Recent findings show that carbides in powder-metallurgical high-speed steels (PM HSS) can assume rounder shapes through isothermal holding from the austenitizing temperature during hardening within the transformation gap between pearlite and bainite. However, the impact of these microstructural modifications on mechanical properties remains insufficiently understood. The present contribution aims to elucidate the influence of this intermediate holding stage on the microstructural evolution of PM produced HSS and its consequent effects on mechanical properties, employing advanced quantitative image analysis and microstructural characterization techniques.

Detailed microstructural examinations revealed notable changes in the morphology of carbides induced by the holding stage. These modifications are hypothesized to contribute to improved resistance to fatigue through stress concentration reduction at the carbide-matrix interface. To assess these implications, hardness measurements and fracture mechanics tests were performed on samples subjected to conventional and modified heat treatment routes.

While the fracture mechanical properties exhibited no significant variation between the two conditions, a measurable increase in hardness was observed in the specimens treated with the additional holding stage. These findings suggest that subtle microstructural adjustments during the transformation gap can beneficially modify the mechanical response of HSS, offering valuable insights for optimizing industrial heat treatment strategies.

086 - Nitrogen Content and Martensite in Powder Metallurgy Martensitic Steels  
Alice Robinson, Rolls-Royce

Powder metallurgy (PM) processing is increasingly popular for manufacturing complex and high value components for high integrity applications, such as nuclear. Since nitrogen is an austenite stabiliser and can potentially be adsorbed during powder solidification, it may be desirable to adjust alloy compositions for powder manufacturing. Stabilizing the austenite phase limits the transformation to martensite, affecting the phase balance and resulting magnetic response. Nuclear 12%Cr martensitic steels are typically used in their wrought form, however due to the long lifecycle of nuclear components, traditional supply routes for unique nuclear variants e.g. F6NM, 403 and Jethete M153 are often limited, and alternative supply chains are sought to de-risk future manufacturing campaigns. PM supply routes are considered secure given the inherent flexibility of the processes involved. This work manufactures variants of PM Jethete M153 to understand the nitrogen content and phase balance at different points in the PM manufacturing route for comparison with wrought Jethete M153.

244 - Influence of Sintering - Homogenizing Conditions and Rapid Cooling on Microstructure and Properties of Sinter – Hardened PM Parts
Ravindra Kumar Malhotra, Malhotra Engineers

Sinter-Hardening process is a combination of PM Primary process of sintering and secondary process of Hardening. Conventional hardening via homogenizing in controlled atmosphere and oil quenching after completing sintering needed two separate furnaces which cause bottlenecks. Advent of Sinter-Hardening steels gave Sinter-Hardening process for PM parts needing subsequent hardening in one furnace with special cooling features utilizing same protective sintering atmosphere. The result of Sinter-Hardening process are dependent on different sub processes like lubricant removal, pre-sintering, sintering and homogenizing prior to rapid cooling and post cooling. There will be influence of cooling rates achieved during rapid cooling coupled with alloy customization for desired part properties. There is role of sintering fixtures too which may hinder with free cooling as a trade off for maintaining critical dimensions or flatness. Limitations of multilayer loading reduces Sinter-Hardening outputs as compared to normal sintering from same furnace. A dream Sinter-Hardening furnace would work with similar process parameters as would a normal sintering operation from the same furnace giving identical throughputs. Only difference should be high-low running of the cooling blowers as per design. Comparison of set of sintering parameters and thermal profile with end results on Sinter-Hardening parts would be an in-depth review of process equipment design and powder to achieve best results of microstructure and properties of PM parts for demanding applications with rated life cycle.

293 - Mechanically-alloyed Particulate Metal Matrix Composites (MMC)s for Critical Aerospace Applications
Martin Perez, Materion

Manufacture of MMCs utilizing a novel high-energy mixing powder metallurgy process that ensures a homogeneous reinforcement distribution which enables a refined and isotropic grain structure. Using high-energy mechanical alloying (HEMA) yields a homogeneous distribution of ultrafine to nanoscale silicon carbide particles in an aluminium matrix. Unlike traditional SiC-Al blended composites, HEMA results in a alloy with good conventional machinability and improved ductility. The technology has proven successful with a variety of aluminium matrix alloys and silicon carbide contents ranging 15 to 40 vol.%.

Using the HEMA process in combination with traditional powder metallurgy consolidation methods, aluminium alloys can be reinforced with up to 40 vol.% silicon carbide particles.  An example is  2009/SiC/15p (5 µm).  This composite provides a weight savings of ~36% over titanium alloys with good fatigue and fretting performance. The MMC also has high wear resistance and low friction characteristics due to the SiC and is of particular interest for a variety of applications within the aerospace and robotics industries.  The microstructure and properties of HEMA MMC will be presented and discussed with a specific focus the effect of chemistry and loading on properties relevant to aerospace and robotics applications.

290 - Reactive Liquid-Phase Sintering of TiB₂-MoB₂ Ceramics
Jhewn-Kuang Chen, National Taipei University of Technology

Titanium diboride (TiB₂) is a promising ultra-high-temperature ceramic for aerospace and defense applications due to its high hardness, thermal stability, and electrical conductivity; however, poor sinterability and intrinsic brittleness limit its practical use. Molybdenum diboride (MoB₂) exhibits improved sinterability and toughness but reduced hardness when used alone. In this work, a reactive liquid-phase sintering strategy was employed to fabricate TiB₂-MoB₂ ceramics at a relatively low temperature of 1550 °C. Optimized compositions exhibited refined microstructures and reduced porosity, achieving a maximum relative density of 94.2% for Ti₀.₅Mo₀.₅B₂. The highest hardness of 22.5 GPa was obtained for Ti₀.₇₅Mo₀.₂₅B₂, while a balanced mechanical performance of 323.4 MPa flexural strength and 8.9 MPa·m⁰·⁵ fracture toughness was achieved. Toughening mechanisms include crack deflection, grain-boundary pinning, and liquid-phase-assisted densification. Density functional theory calculations confirm enhanced metallic bonding from MoB₂ dissolution into the TiB₂ lattice, contributing to improved toughness and ductility.

296 - Resistance Based Sintering Combined with Secondary Processing for Enhancing Electrical Conductivity in Aluminum - Graphene Composites
Olga Eliseeva, EWI - Edison Welding Institute

High-conductivity aluminum–graphene composites are of significant interest as electrical conductors. Graphene additions are well known to increase the conductivity of aluminum alloys.  The created composite offers the advantages of not only enhanced conductivity increases in both stiffness and strength. Resistance-based sintering (RBS) offers a viable pathway for producing aluminum–graphene composites that were previously difficult or impossible to fabricate. RBS allows sintering in extremely short times, offering the potential of consolidation with minimal aluminum–graphene interaction.  This then can preserve the  intrinsic properties of both constituents while producing a usable stock material in a single processing step. In this study, aluminum – graphene composites were created using RBS over a wide range of loading levels.  Secondary deformation processes were then applied to align graphene within the aluminum matrix for secondary enhancements in electrical conductivity. Microstructural evolution showed progressive graphene realignment and partitioning along aluminum grain boundaries, with conductivity peaking at intermediate graphene loadings and reaching values near 30 MS/m. These results demonstrate the coupled roles of graphene morphology, applied strain, and matrix defect reduction in governing electrical performance.  This then demonstrates candidate processing paths compatible with electrical conductor manufacturing.

205 - Principles of Success with Sinter Based Additive Manufacturing
Stefan Joens, Elnik Systems, LLC

What does it take to sinter with success? The continued development of sinter-based additive manufacturing requires a holistic approach to designing, printing, debinding and sintering. Failing to take all steps into consideration at the beginning of the process will likely lead to wasted time and resources. In this presentation, Stefan shares his decades of experience for sintering in the metal injection molding industry and applies it directly to the future of binder jetting and other metal additive manufacturing technologies. Stefan will share the principles of success for sintering highly complex, additively manufactured green structures. 

Learning Objectives:
Learn best practice designs to identify critical features & clearance details to accommodate shrinkage and ideal mechanical properties. 
Understand furnace technology considerations (atmosphere, partial pressure, vacuum) to determine the correct recipe for select materials & applications. 
Explore live simulation software tools, understand gravity impact, and how to measure twice and cut once with sintering. 
Discover several case studies in metal injection molding and additive manufacturing. 

144 - Occupational Hygiene and Safety in Sinter-Based Metal Additive Manufacturing: Control, Monitoring, and Operational Discipline
Midhun Gopakumar, 3DEO, Inc.

As the metal additive manufacturing (AM) industry advances toward large-scale industrial adoption, the importance of occupational hygiene and systematic hazard identification, assessment, and control has become increasingly critical. Through sinter-based metal AM workflows, personnel may encounter multiple hazardous exposures and process related risks. Such hazards include toxic metal exposures, flash fire and explosion of combustible dust, airborne particulate emissions, asphyxiant gases, thermal energy, mechanical pinch points, and other chemical and physical exposures. These hazards span powder handling operations, the printing process itself, and a broad range of downstream steps including green-part handling, depowdering, dimensional inspection, waste management, sintering, and preventive maintenance of associated capital equipment. Given this complex hazard landscape, a comprehensive framework for identifying, evaluating, monitoring, and mitigating risks is essential to safeguard operators, maintain regulatory compliance, and minimize environmental impact.

We present a process map of 3DEO’s Intelligent Layering metal AM technology, accompanied by a robust framework for occupational hygiene assessment, engineering and administrative control implementation, and continuous monitoring. This work provides a case study for establishing safe, disciplined, and scalable operations in sinter-based metal AM environments.

291 - Challenging Investment Climate Puts Truck-Delivered Hydrogen Supply at Risk
Devon Landry, Nel Hydrogen

Hydrogen for North American heat-treating applications has been traditionally provided using truck delivery of bulk liquefied or compressed hydrogen by one of four industrial gas companies.  Rapid changes in the political and economic climate around hydrogen have created difficult market conditions resulting in the cancellation of many hydrogen projects required for supply expansion to meet anticipated demand growth.

The industrial gas industry is highly disciplined and prefers large investments in major projects with assured markets and returns as compared to the wildcatting practices common in other industries.  Within the industrial gas industry, hydrogen investments have proven to be financially and operationally much riskier than alternatives such as air-separation units.  2025 has seen the cancellation and write-off of multiple major hydrogen projects costing the industry billions and resulting in job loss of at least one industry luminary.  Given the limited supply of internal investment funding, truck-delivered hydrogen investments no longer meet internal investment criteria.

Hydrogen users need to look ahead and determine how they are going to meet their own hydrogen needs in a market that faces tightening supply of delivered hydrogen.  Our presentation will discuss simplifying and risk-reducing hydrogen supply through self-generation.

251 - Printability and Performance of Oxygen-Free Copper (Cu-OF) Powder via Laser Powder Bed Fusion
José Muñiz, Equispheres Inc.

Copper is widely used in electronics, power systems, and thermal management, but its high thermal conductivity and reflectivity make it challenging to process via laser powder bed fusion (LPBF). This study evaluates oxygen-free copper (Cu-OF) powder with a particle-size distribution outside the conventional 15–45 µm or 20–63 µm ranges commonly used for LPBF. The powder is highly spherical, contains few fines, and has low oxygen content, supporting stable melting and consistent layer consolidation.

LPBF printability was assessed across laser powers from 600 to 1000 W. Fully dense, reproducible builds were achieved within defined process windows, despite copper’s intrinsic challenges. Electrical conductivity was measured as a function of sample geometry, showing that high-density, low-defect samples exhibit excellent conductivity characteristic of oxygen-free copper.

These results demonstrate that Cu-OF powder, combined with optimized LPBF parameters, enables the production of high-performance copper components with excellent electrical properties. The findings highlight the potential of additive manufacturing to fabricate functional copper parts for electronics, power systems, and thermal management applications.

084 - Predicting Anisotropic Deformation in Pellet-Extruded Copper MIM Components via Machine Learning
Rawan Elsersawy

This research investigates the anisotropic behavior and dimensional stability of copper Metal Injection Molding (MIM) components fabricated through pellet extrusion-based 3D printing using Copper based feedstock. The study examines how strand orientation during printing affects the final part geometry after thermal processing. Multiple test specimens were containing struts with different slopes and diameters were printed. These specimens went through systematic thermal processing cycles with different debinding and sintering temperature profiles to evaluate the relationship between sintering  parameters and dimensional conformity. A comprehensive dimensional analysis protocol kept track of geometric evolution at three critical stages: immediately post-printing, after debinding, and after sintering. Advanced image processing techniques are employed to quantitatively characterize deformation patterns, including directional analysis of warpage, anisotropy, and percentage of dimensional change relative to design geometry. Dimensional data from straight struts specimens across various processing parameters were used to train a machine learning model to predict deformation behavior. The model's predictive capability was then validated by printing specimens with curved struts geometries and comparing predicted dimensional changes against experimentally measured results. This approach aims to establish a predictive framework for optimizing print strategies and thermal cycles for copper MIM components with improved dimensional control and predictable anisotropic properties.

151 - Investigation of Powder Evolution and Reuse Strategies in Additively Manufactured Pure Copper
Sofia Kazi, Chalmers Tekniska Hogskol

Additively manufactured pure copper finds applications across multiple industries due to its excellent electrical and thermal conductivity. This study investigates the effects of powder reuse on pure copper feedstock in both powder bed fusion – laser beam (PBF-LB) and powder bed fusion – electron beam (PBF-EB) processes. Due to the inherent differences in processing conditions between PBF-LB and PBF-EB, reusability of the powder will be affected and the powder degradation behavior can be affected. By employing high-resolution scanning electron microscopy (HR-SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), this work assesses changes in powder surface chemistry before and after reuse. Findings reveal increased oxygen content, increase of surface oxide layer thickness, and transformations among copper oxides (CuO to Cu2O) accompanied by Cu(OH)2 formation on powder particles during handling and reuse. These changes indicate powder degradation that can negatively impact processability, part quality, and material utilization. Understanding powder degradation mechanisms in both PBF-LB and PBF-EB is critical for optimizing reuse strategies, enhancing material utilization, and ensuring consistent part quality in copper additive manufacturing.

262 - Origins, Purpose, and Evolution of the MPIF Tungsten, Refractory Metal & Hardmaterials Conference Series (1992–Present)
Animesh Bose, FAPMI, Shaping Innovations, Inc.

This presentation traces the origin and historical development of the Tungsten, Refractory Metal, and Hardmaterials International Conference series. The concept for the inaugural meeting emerged around 1990, when the co-authors, Robert Dowding and Animesh Bose, were conducting research on tungsten heavy alloys and encountered significant difficulty accessing reliable information on the dynamic behavior of these materials, particularly in ballistic applications. Existing knowledge was limited, fragmented, and dispersed among isolated research groups. Recognizing the need to break these isolated information “silos” and promote broader scientific exchange, the authors sought a professional society willing to support a new, untested technical meeting. Due to Bose’s involvement with MPIF, they were approached and MPIF agreed to sponsor the effort.  This led to the first International Conference on Tungsten and Tungsten Alloys, 1992, was held in Crystal City, Arlington, VA.  This conference proved highly successful and demonstrated the need for a focused forum in this area. Driven by attendee input and industry interest, the conference scope expanded over subsequent decades to encompass refractory metals and hardmaterial. The 2026 meeting marks the 11th in the series. This reflects more than three decades of evolution from the original tungsten-focused program to the current comprehensive international forum. This presentation offers the founders’ perspective on the motivation, development, and continuing growth of this unique technical conference series.

501 - Qualification of a Production Process for Additive Manufacturing of Surgical Devices
Jon Frankel, HOLOAM/Greene Group

Sinter-based metal additive manufacturing is gaining recognition as a low-volume alternative to metal injection molding for surgical instruments. In particular, AM can serve as a bridge between prototyping levels and production at large enough quantity to justify the costs of a mold. The instrument manufacturer not only de-risks the decision to invest in MIM tooling, but they also minimize the expense of repeating design verification and validation if the printed part’s mechanical and material properties are the same as those of the MIM part. Machined parts often do not meet that equivalency standard. Depending on complexity, printing components is less expensive than machining. 

This presentation describes a case study in developing and qualifying a manufacturing process for a component in a robotic surgical device. The component is typical for the application: small and intricate with tolerances as low as +/-12 µm and surface finish expectations of <1 µm Ra. Annual volumes before a transition to molding will be less than 10,000 units. Stereolithography by Digital Light Processing (DLP) has proven to be the metal AM approach best suited for this application. This technique uses UV light to cure a photoreactive binder embedded with metal particles in patterns generated by a digital micromirror array. But, even DLP printing struggles to meet the necessary precision and repeatability. The preferred approach is to marry additive manufacturing to traditional machining techniques to create the highest yielding, lowest cost hybrid process flow. 

502 - A Decade of Full-Scale Commercial Production with Bronze-Infiltrated McLean-Fogg J-10 via Binder Jetting – Real Customer Successes (2015–2025)
Roger Janssen, 3DX Industries

 Since 2015, 3DX Industries has been running McLean-Fogg J-10 powdered metal with bronze infiltration in full series production on ExOne  binder jetting systems — longer than virtually anyone else in the field. This is a mature, customer-qualified process that has been delivering real commercial parts year after year.  Actual production examples include:

• Structural and load-bearing components that replaced machined or welded assemblies with a single printed/infiltrated part, cutting customer cost and lead time . 
• High-precision, components, and complex geometries that have passed destructive testing, salt-spray, pressure cycling, and multiple years of field service with zero failures. 
• Recurring customer programs achieving full density via bronze infiltration, consistent dimensional accuracy within ±0.003 in (feature dependent) , and mechanical properties that meet or exceed MPIF standards for infiltrated materials.

This presentation shows what sinter-based AM looks like when it is no longer “emerging” — it is simply the best manufacturing method for certain medium-volume, high-complexity metal parts.