Abstract: A niobium sintered body for a capacitor, which exhibits an LC value of not larger than 300 &mgr;A/g as measured after an electrolytic oxide film is formed thereon. The sintered body preferably exhibits a product (CV) [i.e., a product of capacity (C) with electrolysis voltage (V)] of at least 40,000 &mgr;F·V/g. The sintered body is produced by sintering a niobium powder containing at least one niobium compound selected from niobium nitride, niobium carbide and niobium boride. A capacitor manufactured from the sintered body has a large capacity per unit weight and good leak current characteristics. Especially, a sintered body made of a niobium powder having a large average degree of roundness has a relatively large porosity and a good packed density, and a capacitor manufactured from this sintered body has a large capacity and good withstand voltage characteristics.

Abstract: A solder ball having a diameter of 1.2 mm or less, a dispersion of a diameter distribution of 5% or less and sphericity of 0.95 or more, an area ratio of the maximum dendrite being 80% or less of a cross section including a center of the solder ball, comprises a first additional element of 0.5-8 mass % of Ag and/or 0.1-3 mass % of Cu, and 0.006-10 mass %, in total, of at least one second additional element selected from the group consisting of Bi, Ge, Ni, P, Mn, Au, Pd, Pt, S, In and Sb, the balance being substantially Sn. The solder ball is produced by a uniform droplet-spraying method comprising the steps of vibrating a melt of a solder alloy in a crucible under pressure to force the melt to drop through orifices of the crucible; permitting the melt dropping through the orifices to become spherical droplets in a non-oxidizing gas atmosphere; and rapidly solidifying them.

Abstract: An sintered iron-based powder metal body with outstandingly lower re-compacting load and having a high density and a method of manufacturing an iron-based sintered component with fewer pores of a sharp shape and having high strength and high density, the method comprising mixing, an iron-based metal powder containing at most about 0.05% of carbon, at most about 0.3% of oxygen, at most about 0.010% of nitrogen, with at least about 0.03% and at most about 0.5% of graphite powder and a lubricant, preliminarily compacting the mixture into a preform, the density of which is about 7.3 Mg/m3 or more, and preliminarily sintering the preform in a non-oxidizing atmosphere in which a partial pressure of nitrogen is about 30 kPa or less at a temperature of about 1000° C. or higher and about 1300° C. or lower, thereby forming a sintered iron-based powder metal body with outstandingly lower re-compacting load and having high deformability, the density of which is about 7.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a method of adding a grain growth inhibitor of WC/Co cemented carbide, which comprises adding a water-soluble salt of V, Ta, or Cr component as a grain growth inhibitor, at the time of mixing water-soluble salts of W and Co during the initial production process of WC/Co cemented carbides. As a result, the present invention leads to the production of powder of homogeneous distribution of grain growth inhibitors, which in turn results in the enhancement of the mechanical properties thereof by effectively controlling the abnormal growth of WC during sintering in the production process of said cemented carbides.

Abstract: The present invention is aimed at providing a platinum material in which creep strength is elevated by improving a metal grain shape in an oxide-dispersion strengthened platinum material in which zirconium oxide is dispersed, and providing a process for producing the platinum material. The present invention provides an oxide-dispersion strengthened platinum material in which zirconium oxide is dispersed in platinum and which can be obtained through rolling and thermal recrystallization, in which platinum grains constituting the platinum material have an average grain size in a rolling direction in the range of 200 to 1500 &mgr;m and an average grain aspect ratio of 20 or more.

Abstract: The present invention aims to prevent heating and ignition of a material powder of a rare-earth alloy while reducing the oxygen content thereof so as to improve the magnetic properties of the rare-earth magnet. A rare-earth alloy powder is compacted by using a powder compacting apparatus including: an airtight container capable of storing a rare-earth alloy powder therein; an airtight feeder box moved between a powder-filling position and a retracted position; and an airtight powder supply device capable of supplying the rare-earth alloy powder from the container into the feeder box without exposing the rare-earth alloy powder to the atmospheric air.

Abstract: The invention relates to a hard metal or cermet body with a hard material phase consisting of WC and/or at least one carbide, nitride, carbonitride and/or oxicarbonitride of at least one of the elements from group IVa, Va, or VIa of the periodic table and a binding metal phase consisting of Fe, Co and/or Ni, said binding metal phase making up 3 to 25 mass %. In particular, WC crystallites should protrude beyond the hard metal or cermet surface of the by 2 to 20 &mgr;m in order to improve the adhesion of surface layers that are applied.

Abstract: A high velocity oxygen fuel thermal spray powder comprising a superalloy having the formula MCrAlY—X, wherein M is at least one metal taken from the group consisting of nickel, cobalt, and iron; X is at least one reactive element taken from the group consisting of hafnium, rhenium, lanthanum, and tantalum; and yttrium is present in levels greater than 1% by weight of the total composition and up to about 6% by weight of the total composition. In addition, the powder may be blended with an agglomeration of M′CrAlY and a ceramic, wherein M′ is at least one metal taken from the group consisting of nickel, cobalt, and iron. The invention offers improved high temperature oxidation, corrosion and creep resistance.

Abstract: A process for producing an iron-based powder composition for powder metallurgy having excellent flowability at room temperature and a warm compaction temperature, having improved compactibility enabling lowering ejection force in compaction, and to provide a process for producing a compact of a high density from the iron-based powder composition, wherein the iron-based powder composition comprises an iron-based powder, a lubricant, and an alloying powder, and at least one of the iron-based powder, the lubricant, and the alloying powder is coated with at least one surface treatment agent selected from the group of surface treatment agents of organoalkoxysilanes, organosilazanes, titanate coupling agents, fluorine-containing silicon silane coupling agents, and wherein the iron-based powder composition is compacted at a temperature not lower than the lowest melting point of the employed lubricants, but not higher than the highest melting point of the employed lubricants.

Abstract: The invention is a corrosion resistant powder useful for deposition through thermal spray devices. The powder consists essentially of, by weight percent, 30 to 60 tungsten, 27 to 60 chromium, 1.5 to 6 carbon, a total of 10 to 40 cobalt plus nickel and incidental impurities plus melting point suppressants.

Abstract: The present invention relates to nickel powder characterized in that the rate of the nickel particles whose particle size is not less than 1.2 time the average particle size as determined by the observation with an SEM is not more than 5% of the total number of nickel particles, that the rate of nickel particles whose particle size is not more than 0.8 time the average particle size is not more than 5% of the total number of nickel particles and that the tap density of the nickel powder is not less than 2.5 g/cm3, as well as a conductive paste for use in making a multilayer ceramic capacitor. The nickel powder of the present invention has a narrow particle size distribution and an excellent packing ability in a conductive paste and is particularly suitably used for forming a thin and uniform inner electrode for a multilayer ceramic capacitor, without being accompanied by the formation of any crack and/or the generation of any delamination.

Abstract: In a high-speed fabrication process for producing highly uniform ultra-small metallic micro-spheres, a molten metal is passed through a small orifice, producing a stream of molten metal therefrom. A series of molten metal droplets forms from the break up of the capillary stream. Applied harmonic disturbances are used to control and generate satellite and parent droplets. Significantly, the satellite droplets formed are smaller than the orifice, allowing for the production of smaller metal balls with larger orifices. The satellite droplets are separated from the parent droplets by electrostatic charging and deflection or by aerodynamic or acoustic sorting. Preferably, the satellite droplets are cooled before being collected to avoid defects and achieve high uniformity of the resulting metal balls.

Abstract: A first compact (11) is molded by injection according to the MIM method in which a molding material composed of a mixture of metal powder and a binder is injected into a die for molding, after which a second compact (12) is molded by injection in close contact with the joining surface (110) of the first compact (11) thereby to fabricate a metal composite compact (1). The second compact (12) is molded by injection by making it flow and fill a die (8) in such a manner as to obtain a flow component (R) in the direction parallel to the joining surface (110) of the first compact (11) on the same joining surface (110). In a method according to another embodiment, cavity surfaces (60, 61) formed on a reference die (50) and a first replacement die (51), respectively, are placed in opposed relation to each other thereby to form a first cavity (71), in which the first compact (11) is molded by injection.

Abstract: A sintered metal sprocket for a silent chain is produced by the following steps. A base mixture is prepared, which contains a powder metallurgical iron powder, a lubricant and a graphite powder. Then, the base mixture is subjected to a compression molding while being heated at above approximately 100° C. thereby to produce a green compact. Then, the green compact is subjected to a sintering at a temperature above approximately 1180° C. For much improving the mechanical performance of the sprocket thus sintered, the same may be subjected to a carbonizing hardening or an induction hardening.

Abstract: An aluminum/diamond composite for the manufacture of metal structures having high yield strength, high stiffness, high thermal conductivity, and low coefficient of thermal expansion. The composite consists of aluminum metal with included diamond particles. The volume fraction of diamond particles may range from 5% to 80%, but is most preferably about 30% to 40%. Two methods of manufacture of the composite are disclosed. The material may be used to manufacture gun barrels, rocket nozzles, cookware, heat sinks, electronics packaging, and automotive components such as brake disks, brake drums, transmission components, and engine components.

Abstract: A method of the present invention manufactures a watch-bracelet component through step (1A) of producing a green body containing a raw material powder by extrusion molding, step (2A) of cutting the green body, step (3A) of debinding the cut green body, and step (4A) of sintering the debound body to yield a sintered body. Subsequently, the method can easily manufacture even a product having a complicated shape, and the invention can provide a method of manufacturing a watch-bracelet component with a wide range of materials to choose from.

Abstract: A process for preparation of molded articles, such as golf club heads, by metal injection molding and the resulting product.

Abstract: A silicon base binary alloy of prealloyed powder having less than 10% aluminum, excluding zero. The alloy may be in the form of gas atomized prealloyed powder, which powder may be consolidated to form an article. Preferably, the article is a sputtering target.

Abstract: Described is a process for producing sintered parts from an aluminum sintering mixture, wherein between 10 and 70% by weight of pure aluminum powder and between 30 and 90% by weight of an aluminum alloy powder are mixed to form an aluminum sintering mixture. The aluminum alloy powder is of the following composition: between 14 and 35% by weight of Si; between 1 and 7% by weight of Cu; between 0.3 and 2.5% by weight of Mg; between 0.3 and 6% by weight of a transition metal, the balance aluminum. The pure alloy powder and the aluminum alloy powder are each of a grain size of a maximum of 315 &mgr;m. The aluminum sintering mixture is mixed with between 0.5 and 2% by weight of compacting additive. The mix of alloy sintering mixture and compacting additive is compacted to form a green compact. The green compact is then sintered. As no low-melting phases occur in the invention, sintered bodies which are stable in respect of shape are reproducibly obtained in the sintering operation.

Abstract: Sintered cermet materials far tools such as cutting tools, which are excellent in heat resistance, wear resistance and fracture resistance, are inexpensive, and have long life time, and a method for producing such sintered cermet materials. The sintered cermet materials for tools are composed of sintered bodies which are obtained by preparing a mixed powder containing powders of TiCN, Si3N4, Al2O3, CrxN (x=1-2.7 and ZrN, at least one powder of W and WC, and at least one kind of metal powder selected from the group consisting of Co, Ni, Ta and Mo, and sintering the mixed powder .