(V) Hydrogen Generation Facilitates Sintering Atmospheres

Whether for annealing, brazing or sintering, furnace atmospheres help ensure that metals thermal processors obtain the results they need. Hydrogen-containing atmospheres are often employed to protect surfaces from oxidation, and to ensure satisfactory processing results.

Hydrogen-containing atmospheres make thermal processing more forgiving because the hydrogen improves heat conduction and actively cleans heated surfaces – reducing oxides and destroying surface impurities. Especially in the case of powder-based fabrication such as P/M, MIM or binder-jet metal AM, the use of a hydrogen-containing thermal processing atmosphere ensures the highest possible density of the sintered parts, without necessitating the use of post-processing technologies.

Users of hydrogen and hydrogen-containing gas blends often struggle with hydrogen supply options. Hydrogen storage may create extreme compliance problems due to its flammability and high energy content. Hydrogen generation provides an approach to obviate hydrogen storage issues.

Especially during a time of rapid implementation of metal AM technologies, the deployment of hydrogen generation can ease the addition of thermal processing atmospheres to facilities.