A PROCESS AND A MULTI PISTON HOT PRESS FOR PRODUCING POWDER METALLURGY COMPONENTS, SUCH AS CERAMETALLIC FRICTION COMPOSITES

摘要

The present invention provides an improved process and a novel Multi Piston Hot Press (MPHP), the improved process tailored for production of Iron-based Powder Metallurgy (PM) cerametallic composites, including friction-producing composites like automotive clutch buttons and brake pads, specifically, cerametallic clutch cookies, which, with the limitation of not being bonded to any supporting back plate, required the present improved process and, for their mass production through pressure sintering, required the MPHP, specifically designed, overcoming the limitations of the existing pressure sintering furnaces, the MPHP including a plurality of hydraulic pistons for applying predefined pressure on a plurality of stacks, built from green-composites, during their sintering in a leak-proof muffle, the thermal energy for pressure sintering being provided by and a pair of semicircular movable electrical-heating hoods which can be closed around the muffle during pressure sintering and separated for cooling and unloading the iron based cerametallic clutch cookies/buttons.