Metallography of Powder Metallurgy Materials

The primary distinction between the microstructure of an ingot metallurgy/wrought material and one fabricated by the powder metallurgy route of pressing followed by sintering is the presence of porosity in the latter. In its various morphologies, porosity affects the mechanical, physical, chemical, electrical and thermal properties of the material. Thus, it is important to be able to characterize quantitatively the microstructure of powder metallurgy parts and components. Metallographic procedures necessary for the reliable characterization of microstructures in powder metallurgy materials are reviewed, with emphasis on the intrinsic challenges presented by the presence of porosity. To illustrate the utility of these techniques, five case studies are presented involving powder metallurgy materials. These case studies demonstrate problem solving via metallography in diverse situations: failure of a tungsten carbide-coated precipitation hardening stainless steel, failure of a steel pump gear, quantification of the degree of sinter (DOS), simulation of performance of a porous filter using automated image analysis, and analysis of failure in a sinter brazed part assembly.