What is a Sintering Furnace?
A sintering furnace is used during the sintering process, which involves the heating of powder compacts in order to increase the product’s mechanical strength, density, and translucency. This type of oven must be able to maintain heating temperatures below the product’s melting point, as the goal is not to liquefy the material. Rather, a sintering furnace is used more to shape materials into their final product.
How Sintering Furnaces are Used
Sintering furnaces are used within the manufacturing industry when producing metals, ceramics, plastics, and other materials:
• Metal sintering is used to develop a wide variety of products including shotgun shells used by the military, aircraft hydraulic systems, and stainless steel tools.
• Ceramic sintering uses substances like glass, aluminum, zirconia, and silica to develop pottery and other ceramic products.
• Plastic sintering is used to develop products that require wicking properties, as well as materials used as ski and snowboard bases.