Plasma alloying and spheroidization process and development

Elemental and blended refractory metal powders were processed using a plasma alloying and spheroidization (PAS) process. The powders were characterized to determine changes in chemistry and morphology after processing. Five refractory metal powders were evaluated during this investigation: (1) crystalline W, (2) spray dried Mo, (3) W-25 wt.% Re composite powder, (4) W-2 wt.% Re composite powder, and (5) Mo-40 wt.% Re composite powder. Benefits of the PAS process, such as a two-order of magnitude reduction in oxygen contamination, production of highly spherical powders for enhanced flow characteristics, and the ability to produce prealloyed powders were demonstrated.