Dispensing – Molten metal dispensing – Gaseous fluid engages molten metal
Patent
1995-03-06
1997-06-03
Kastler, Scott
Dispensing
Molten metal dispensing
Gaseous fluid engages molten metal
222199, B22D 4108
Patent
active
056350961
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to motors the motor effect of which can be employed in two different ways giving it an important but by no means exclusive application in apparatus for manufacturing metal matrix composite materials, i.e. metals incorporating particulate substances. The term "particulate substances" is used herein to include substances in chopped or short fibre form in addition to powdered and granular substances.
Very fine powders are difficult to make flow in a controlled manner and one means of producing a flow is to cause the material to vibrate. The present invention is based on the discovery that if a ring disposed substantially horizontally is caused to vibrate radially, preferably at its natural frequency, a flowable substance deposited on the upper surface of the ring moves to the central aperture of the ring and further, that material tends during its fall through the ring to move then towards the axis of the ring under the radial compressing force of gas present in the hole and vibrating at the same frequency as the ring.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to this invention there is provided a motor comprising a ring arranged with its axis in an up and down direction, and having its upper surface either disposed substantially horizontally or with a downward inclination towards the axis of the ring, and means for imparting radial vibration to the ring so to form a node on the axis of the ring.
Where the motor is used as a feed motor for a particulate substance, means is provided for directing the substance on to the upper surface of the ring.
A hopper for the material may conveniently have its lower end secured to the ring in a manner to vibrate with the ring.
The upper surface of the ring may advantageously be inclined towards the axis of the ring and may be smooth or formed with concentric grooves or a spiral groove of saw-tooth section. In one construction the groove or grooves are of ratchet-tooth section with the steeper face of the section facing towards the axis of the ring.
A useful way of producing metal matrix composites is to atomize the molten matrix metal by gas or other means and introduce into the atomized spray the second phase which can be in the form of solid metallic or non-metallic particles or chopped fibres entrained in a gas stream. The combined stream of metal matrix and second phase particles may then be directed on to a substrate where it solidifies, or may be allowed to solidify as a powder. This procedure has many advantages but is not free from technical problems. One such problem is to achieve some degree of penetration of the metal spray with the gas-entrained second phase to produce a spray in which the second phase is uniformly distributed so as to give a solidified product which has a uniformly distributed second phase. A special difficulty arises when the second phase consists of a very fine powder which may be sub-micron in size. In these circumstances it is difficult to add the particles to the metal stream at a uniform controlled rate with the result that the efficiency of the operation is low.
The invention also provides apparatus for mixing a particulate substance with a matrix metal comprising, for the addition of the particulate substance, a feed motor comprising a ring arranged with its axis in an up and down direction, and having its upper surface either disposed substantially horizontally or with a downward inclination towards the axis of the ring, means for imparting radial vibration to the ring so to form a node on the axis of the ring and means for depositing the substance on to the upper surface of the ring, for directing a stream of the metal in molten form axially downward through the ring, and means for directing one or more downwardly inclined jets of atomizing gas on to the combined flow of molten metal and particulate material.
A process may thus be obtained in which a stream of liquid, which may be coherent or particulate, is passed through a ring, the top surface of which may be sloping inwards and the
REFERENCES:
patent: 3941284 (1976-03-01), McLean
Sansome Dennis H.
Singer Alfred R. E.
Gordon David P.
Kastler Scott
Sprayforming Developments Limited of Innovation Center
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