Effects of sintering pressure on the mechanical properties of spark plasma sintered titanium

Titanium is a light-weight metal with excellent mechanical properties, and is an attractive material for structural and biomedical applications. Among powder metallurgy techniques, rapid manufacturing routes at relatively low temperatures, such as spark plasma sintering (SPS) process, which involve processing of hard to sinter materials at lower temperatures and in shorter time, result in titanium engineering components with higher relative density and good mechanical properties compared to conventional technologies. In the present work, the use of SPS on commercial purity titanium was investigated. Sintering experiments were conducted in the pressure range of ۱۰-۷۰ MPa for ۵ min, under a constant temperature of ۱۱۵۰℃, in vacuum. Samples obtained at different pressures were characterized in term of density, hardness, bending properties. Experimental data confirm that very good mechanical properties can be attained after spark plasma sintering at pressure of ۳۰ MPa.