Influence of Sintering Atmosphere, Temperature and the Solution-Annealing Treatment on the Properties of Precipitation-Hardening Sintered 17-4 PH Stainless Steel

So far, unlike metal injection molding (MIM), conventional powder metallurgy technology (PM) has not been regarded as a method for producing structural elements from 17-4 PH powders, due to the problems of obtaining almost fully compacted shapes after sintering. Nevertheless, recent research demonstrates that it is possible to manufacture sintered parts with high strength by pressing and sintering. The purpose of the study was to determine the degree of densification of 17-4 PH sintered stainless steel during sintering at different temperatures and atmospheres. As a result of the study, it was pointed out that both the temperature and the sintering atmosphere play an essential role in the process of densification of the studied powders during sintering. The formation of delta ferrite and a more pronounced degree of spheroidization of the pores is activated by a higher sintering temperature. Furthermore, after solution-annealed and age-hardened treatment, sintered 17-4 PH stainless steel exhibits high strength with moderate ductility at a level that is difficult to achieve for other sintered stainless-steel grades, such as austenitic, ferritic and martensitic. In turn, the largest improvement in the pitting corrosion resistance in 0.5 M NaCl solution is reached by sintering at 1340 °C in hydrogen and after solid solution treatment.