Materials Science Forum, Vol.416-4, 425-430, 2003
Particle size distribution in the radial direction of the spray cone and its influence on the formation of porosity in Fe-6%Si alloy processed by spray forming
The spray forming process consists of atomizing a molten metal flux by a high velocity gas stream to generate small droplets. These are accelerated and simultaneously refrigerated / solidified by the atomization gas during their trajectory onto the substrate, upon which they consolidate, forming a coherent and dense pre-formed deposit. The present work consisted of investigating the behavior of particle size distribution in the radial direction of the spray cone; and its influence on the porosity of the deposited material. It was found that the size distribution curves were dislocated to the region of the smallest particle size when the radial distance was increased, leading to a decrease in the mean particle size and increasing the percentage of volumetric porosity in the material deposited in this direction.