Abstract: A process for forming particulate tungsten heavy alloys from agglomerated material containing the individual metals by using a high temperature zone is improved by retaining the material in the high temperature zone for a time sufficient to at least partially melt the metals that are alloying with tungsten while maintaining the temperature of those metals below the boiling point of the lowest boiling metal in the alloying component.

Abstract: A process is disclosed for producing discontinuous metal foils. The process involves entraining metal powder particles in a carrier gas and passing the powder particles through a high temperature zone at a temperature above the melting point of the powder particles to melt at least about 50% by weight of the powder particles and thereafter resolidifying the resulting high temperature treated material by impacting the material against a substrate to form the foils.

Abstract: A process is disclosed for producing metal flakes. The process involves entraining the metal powder particles in a carrier gas and passing the powder particles through a high temperature zone at a temperature above the melting point of the powder particles to melt at least about 50% of the powder particles, resolidifying the resulting high temperature treated material by impacting the material against a substrate, and thereafter contacting the material with a non-oxidizing gas which can be nitrogen, argon, hydrogen, helium or combinations of these to remove the material from the substrate in the form of flakes.

Abstract: A process is disclosed for producing finely divided spherical metal powders. The process comprises forming a coating of a surface active agent which can be of the nonionic or anionic type on the surfaces of the particles of a metal powder, feeding the coated particles and a carrier gas into a high temperature zone and maintaining the particles in the zone for a sufficient time to melt at least about 50% by weight of the particles and to form droplets therefrom, and cooling the droplets to form metal particles having essentially a spherical shape with the majority of the particles having a size less than about 50 micrometers.