A method may comprise: placing a probe in a molten metal melt comprising a thixotropic metal alloy; injecting a gas into the molten metal melt to form a saturated slurry, the saturated slurry being at a temperature above a liquidus temperature of the thixotropic metal alloy after injecting the gas; removing the probe from the molten metal melt; and depositing the molten metal melt through an extruder of an additive manufacturing system.

A structured multi-phase composite which include a metal phase, and a low stiffness, high thermal conductivity phase or encapsulated phase change material, that are arranged to create a composite having high thermal conductivity, having reduced/controlled stiffness, and a low CTE to reduce thermal stresses in the composite when exposed to cyclic thermal loads. The structured multi-phase composite is useful for use in structures such as, but not limited to, high speed engine ducts, exhaust-impinged structures, heat exchangers, electrical boxes, heat sinks, and heat spreaders.

A structured multi-phase composite which include a metal phase, and a low stiffness, high thermal conductivity phase or encapsulated phase change material, that are arranged to create a composite having high thermal conductivity, having reduced/controlled stiffness, and a low CTE to reduce thermal stresses in the composite when exposed to cyclic thermal loads. The structured multi-phase composite is useful for use in structures such as, but not limited to, high speed engine ducts, exhaust-impinged structures, heat exchangers, electrical boxes, heat sinks, and heat spreaders.

A steel sheet has a specific chemical composition and has a structure represented by, by area ratio, ferrite: 5 to 60%, and bainite: 40 to 95%. When a region that is surrounded by a grain boundary having a misorientation of 15° or more and has a circle-equivalent diameter of 0.3 μm or more is defined as a crystal grain, the proportion of crystal grains each having an intragranular misorientation of 5 to 14° to all crystal grains is 20 to 100% by area ratio. A precipitate density of Ti(C,N) and Nb(C,N) each having a circle-equivalent diameter of 10 nm or less is 10.sup.10 precipitates/mm.sup.3 or more. A ratio (Hvs/Hvc) of a hardness at 20 μm in depth from a surface (Hvs) to a hardness of the center of a sheet thickness (Hvc) is 0.85 or more.

A method may comprise: placing a probe in a molten metal melt comprising a thixotropic metal alloy; injecting a gas into the molten metal melt to form a saturated slurry, the saturated slurry being at a temperature above a liquidus temperature of the thixotropic metal alloy after injecting the gas; removing the probe from the molten metal melt; and depositing the molten metal melt through an extruder of an additive manufacturing system.

Production methods for producing a fibre-reinforced metal component having a metal matrix which is penetrated by a plurality of reinforcing fibres are provided. One method includes depositing in layers reinforcing fibres in fibre layers, depositing in layers and liquefying a metal modelling material in matrix material layers, and consolidating in layers the metal modelling material in adjacently deposited matrix material layers to form the metal matrix of the fibre-reinforced metal component. Here, the metal component is formed integrally from alternately deposited matrix material layers and fibre layers. An alternative method includes introducing an open three-dimensional fibrewoven fabric consisting of reinforcing fibres into a casting mould, pouring a liquid metal modelling material into the casting mould and consolidating the metal modelling material to form the metal matrix of the fibre-reinforced metal component. Here, the metal component is formed integrally from the consolidated metal modelling material and the reinforcing fibres.

A syntactic metal foam composite that is substantially fully dense except for syntactic porosity is formed from a mixture of ceramic microballoons and matrix forming metal. The ceramic microballoons have a uniaxial crush strength and a much higher omniaxial crush strength. The mixture is continuously constrained while it is consolidated. The constraining force is less than the omniaxial crush strength. The substantially fully dense syntactic metal foam composite is then constrained and deformation worked at a substantially constant volume. The deformation working is typically performed at a yield strength that is adjusted by way of selecting a working temperature at which the yield strength is approximately less than the omniaxial crush strength of the included ceramic microballoons. This deformation causes at least work hardening and grain refinement in the matrix metal.

A syntactic metal foam composite that is substantially fully dense except for syntactic porosity is formed from a mixture of ceramic microballoons and matrix forming metal. The ceramic microballoons have a uniaxial crush strength and a much higher omniaxial crush strength. The mixture is continuously constrained while it is consolidated. The constraining force is less than the omniaxial crush strength. The substantially fully dense syntactic metal foam composite is then constrained and deformation worked at a substantially constant volume. The deformation working is typically performed at a yield strength that is adjusted by way of selecting a working temperature at which the yield strength is approximately less than the omniaxial crush strength of the included ceramic microballoons. This deformation causes at least work hardening and grain refinement in the matrix metal.

The application describes methods of making composite bodies including fibre-reinforced composite material with carbon fibre reinforcement and also a metal-containing portion (4). The metal-containing portion (4) is formed by laying up metal reinforcement elements, such as tapes of titanium alloy, among the carbon fibre reinforcement tapes which make up the composite body. The proportion of metal reinforcement may increase progressively towards the surface and/or towards an edge (14) of the composite body. In an example, metal leading and trailing edges (14,15) of a fan blade (1) are integrally formed in this way.

The application describes methods of making composite bodies including fibre-reinforced composite material with carbon fibre reinforcement and also a metal-containing portion (4). The metal-containing portion (4) is formed by laying up metal reinforcement elements, such as tapes of titanium alloy, among the carbon fibre reinforcement tapes which make up the composite body. The proportion of metal reinforcement may increase progressively towards the surface and/or towards an edge (14) of the composite body. In an example, metal leading and trailing edges (14,15) of a fan blade (1) are integrally formed in this way.