Method of Making Near-Net Shapes From Powdered Metals

1 . A method of manufacturing a product, comprising:

forming a metal powder into a desired shape;

transferring the formed metal powder and pressure transmission media into a container; and

applying heat and pressure to the container to form a consolidated product from the formed metal powder.

2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the metal powder includes an alloy or intermetallic compound.

3 . The method of claim 1 , wherein forming the metal powder into the desired shape includes loading the metal powder into a mold having at least one cavity therein that is shaped to correspond to a near final shape of the product.

4 . The method of claim 3 , wherein the formed metal powder is transferred into the container with the mold.

5 . The method of claim 3 , wherein the formed metal powder is at least partially sintered and separated from the mold before being transferred into the container.

6 . The method of claim 5 , further comprising repeating the method while reusing the mold.

7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein a composition of the metal powder includes at least one of Ni and Ti.

8 . The method of claim 7 , wherein a composition of the metal powder includes 58-62 wt % Ni and 38-42 wt % Ti.

9 . The method of claim 8 , wherein the composition of the metal powder further includes up to 5% of other elements.

10 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the pressure transmission media includes at least one of alumina and zircon sand.

11 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising, between the steps of transferring the formed metal powder and pressure transmission media into the container and applying heat and pressure to the container:

sealing a lid onto an opening of the container, the lid having a vacuum port therein;

applying a vacuum via the vacuum port to evacuate the interior of the container; and

sealing the vacuum port while under vacuum to provide an sealed evacuated container.

12 . The method of claim 1 , wherein applying heat and pressure to the container includes hot isostatically pressing the container.

13 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising finishing the consolidated product to form the final shape of the product.

14 . The method of claim 1 , wherein forming the metal powder into the desired shape includes forming the powder via an additive manufacturing process.

15 . The method of claim 14 , wherein the additive manufacturing process includes cold or thermal spray, or directed energy additive manufacturing.

16 . A method of preparing a metal powder for consolidation, comprising:

forming a metal powder into a desired shape;

transferring the formed metal powder and pressure transmission media into a container; and

applying a vacuum to and sealing the container.