An injection molding composition contains a titanium-based powder containing titanium as a main component and having an average particle diameter of 15 μm or more and 35 μm or less, a ceramic powder containing a ceramic as a main material and having an average particle diameter of 1 nm or more and 100 nm or less, and an organic binder. The ceramic is an oxide-based ceramic containing an oxide as a main component, and a standard free energy of formation of the oxide at 1000° C. may be lower than a standard free energy of formation of titanium oxide at 1000° C.

A hopper and method for transferring raw material, which can prevent segregation due to the impact caused by falling of the raw material powder when different types of raw material powders are transferred. The hopper for a raw material powder according to one embodiment of the present disclosure includes: a hopper body having an inner space in which the raw material powder is stored and including an outlet which is formed through the lower end thereof and through which the raw material powder is discharged; a transfer pipe to which the raw material powder discharged through the outlet is transferred and which has a region, through which the raw material powder is transferred, divided into a plurality of regions; and a slide gate unit disposed between the outlet and the transfer pipe to open or close the transfer pipe while adjusting a degree of opening of the transfer pipe.

An apparatus for manufacturing a three dimensional shaped object includes: a manufacturing unit that manufactures a three dimensional shaped object in which a plurality of solidified layers are built up together by repeating to manufacture a solidified layer, which is layered, by performing solidification processing upon a material that is positioned in a region set according to a shape of the three dimensional shaped object that is to be manufactured, to supply a new material upon an upper portion of the solidified layer that has been manufactured, to perform the solidification processing upon the new material and thus to manufacture a new solidified layer; and an inspecting unit that inspects the solidified layer that has already been built up, while the plurality of solidified layers are being built up together.

An improved atomized powder metal material containing an increased amount of free graphite after heat treatment and/or sintering is provided. The powder metal material is typically a ferrous alloy and includes carbon in an amount of 1.0 wt. % to 6.5 wt. % and silicon in an amount of 0.1 wt. % to 6.0 wt. %, based on the total weight of the powder metal material. The powder metal material can also include various other alloying elements, for example at least one of nickel (Ni), cobalt (Co), copper (Cu), tin (Sn), aluminum (Al), sulfur (S), phosphorous (P), boron (B), nitrogen (N), chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), molybdenum (Mo), vanadium (V), niobium (Nb), tungsten (W), titanium (Ti), tantalum (Ta) zirconium (Zr), zinc (Zn), strontium (Sr), calcium (Ca), barium (Ba) magnesium (Mg), lithium (Li), sodium (Na), and potassium (K).

A method of producing composites of micro-engineered, coated particulates embedded in a matrix of metal, ceramic powders, or combinations thereof, capable of being tailored to exhibit application-specific desired thermal, physical and mechanical properties, such as High Altitude Exo-atmospheric Nuclear Standard (HAENS) I, II or III radiation protection, to form substitute materials for nickel, titanium, rhenium, magnesium, aluminum, graphite epoxy, and beryllium. The particulates are solid and/or hollow and may be coated with one or more layers of deposited materials before being combined within a substrate of powder metal, ceramic or some combination thereof which also may be coated. The combined micro-engineered nano design powder is consolidated using novel solid-state processes that prevent melting of the matrix and which involve the application of varying pressures to control the formation of the microstructure and resultant mechanical properties.

A method of producing composites of micro-engineered, coated particulates embedded in a matrix of metal, ceramic powders, or combinations thereof, capable of being tailored to exhibit application-specific desired thermal, physical and mechanical properties, such as High Altitude Exo-atmospheric Nuclear Standard (HAENS) I, II or III radiation protection, to form substitute materials for nickel, titanium, rhenium, magnesium, aluminum, graphite epoxy, and beryllium. The particulates are solid and/or hollow and may be coated with one or more layers of deposited materials before being combined within a substrate of powder metal, ceramic or some combination thereof which also may be coated. The combined micro-engineered nano design powder is consolidated using novel solid-state processes that prevent melting of the matrix and which involve the application of varying pressures to control the formation of the microstructure and resultant mechanical properties.

An aluminum base composite material contains an aluminum polycrystal body being a polycrystal body of a plurality of aluminum base material phases partitioned by a grain boundary, a carbon nanotube part being formed of a carbon nanotube or an aggregate thereof and being dispersed in at least one aluminum base material phase, and an alumina part being formed of alumina and being dispersed in at least one aluminum base material phase. The carbon nanotube preferably has a sphere-equivalent diameter from 10 nm to 300 nm, and the number of the carbon nanotube part that is present in a cross-sectional area of 200 μm.sup.2 of the aluminum base composite material is preferably one or more.

A graphite-copper composite material that includes a copper layer having an average thickness of 15 μm or less and scaly graphite particles laminated with the copper layer interposed therebetween. The graphite-copper composite material has a copper volume fraction of 3 to 20%. The graphite-copper composite material further has: (A) copper crystal grains of the copper layer having an average grain size of 2.8 μm or less, a mass fraction of Al of less than 0.02%, and a mass fraction of Si of less than 0.04%, or (B) an interfacial gap of the copper layer and the scaly graphite particles of 150 nm or less.

Articles are manufactured using self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (SHS) reactions. Particulates including reactants can be blended to form a particulate blend. The particulate blend can be preformed. The preform article can be heated to a pre-heat temperature being below an auto-activation temperature and above a minimum compression activated synthesis temperature. Compressive stress can be exerted on the preform article at the pre-heat temperature to initiate the SHS reaction between the reactants and thereby form a product metallic compound. At approximately peak temperature, a flow stress of the product metallic compound can be exceeded to substantially reduce porosity and thereby form a shaped substantially dense article.

Articles are manufactured using self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (SHS) reactions. Particulates including reactants can be blended to form a particulate blend. The particulate blend can be preformed. The preform article can be heated to a pre-heat temperature being below an auto-activation temperature and above a minimum compression activated synthesis temperature. Compressive stress can be exerted on the preform article at the pre-heat temperature to initiate the SHS reaction between the reactants and thereby form a product metallic compound. At approximately peak temperature, a flow stress of the product metallic compound can be exceeded to substantially reduce porosity and thereby form a shaped substantially dense article.