Influence of nano powder on rheological behavior of bimodal feedstock in powder injection molding

Abstract Rheological behavior of feedstock, which highly affects the condition of green body, is substantial issue in powder injection molding process. In this paper, the influence of nano powder contents in bimodal feedstock on solids loading and rheological behavior has been investigated. The bimodal powders were fabricated with 100 nm and 4 μm sized 316L stainless steel powders, and mixed with wax-based binder system. The critical solids loading for each powder was measured by torque rheometer. In order to analyze net effect of nano powder ratio, all feedstocks were formulated as solids loading of 42 vol.%. Feedstock homogeneity was evaluated by rotational rheometer. Capillary rheometer test was conducted to measure the viscosity of feedstock with different temperatures, shear rates and nano powder ratios. Rheological parameters, like flow index, flow activation energy and moldability index, were calculated based on the capillary rheometer test. The results indicated the critical solids loading and feedstock homogeneity decreased as nano power ratio increased in bimodal feedstock. Rheological parameters were also affected by nano powder ratio, and the optimal mixing ratio of nano powder for moldability index was investigated as 12 vol.%.