JPH0754009A - Method and apparatus for producing powder-packed capsule - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide the method and apparatus for producing the powder-packed capsule capable of easily deaerating the inside of the capsule packed with powder and rapidly, easily, surely and hermetically seal the powder-packed capsule even in a vacuum atmosphere or inert gaseous atmosphere. CONSTITUTION:This method for producing the powder-packed capsule comprises forming a projecting part on the periphery of a cylindrical capsule 1 opened with at least either 4 of an upper and lower caps or at least either 4 of the upper and lower caps on the contact surface of the end face of the cylindrical capsule 1 and the cap part 4 and packing the powder 2 into the capsule, then welding the packed capsule 1 and the cap 4 by energizing electrodes 7, 8 while pressurizing the capsule and the cap between these electrodes by the projecting part described above, thereby hermetically sealing the capsule. A chamber 6 having a deaerating means is internally provided with the upper electrode 7 and the lower electrode 8, respectively, above and below. An arranging part to be disposed with the capsule 1 packed with the powder 2 is formed in the lower electrode. The upper and lower electrodes are movable in such a manner that both approach each other.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for producing a powder-filled capsule in which one or more powders of powder metal, powder alloy, ceramics, etc. are filled in a capsule and sealed for plastic working. And a manufacturing apparatus thereof.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, when performing plastic working using a powder alloy, a can is filled with the powder alloy, heated by a hot press and pressurized while being degassed to obtain a powder compact, and a powder-filled capsule is manufactured. , This capsule is plastically processed. This method is a simple method of heating, degassing and compacting in a hot press, but when taken out from the hot press for plastic working, it has the drawback that gas such as air is mixed again in the compact. is there. In order to improve such a defect, conventionally, one lid of a container called a capsule is provided with a degassing pipe, the powder is filled from the degassing pipe, and the degassing pipe is evacuated while heating in a heating furnace, and then the degassing pipe portion is pressure-contacted. A method (Japanese Patent Publication No. 58-39201) of cutting and welding in order to keep the pressure contact portion airtight is known. The above method simplifies the process, but requires welding of the lid, and cannot compact the powder filled in the can after welding. Furthermore, in order to maintain the properties of the rapidly solidified alloy powder suitable for this type of processing after processing, it is necessary to avoid heating above a predetermined temperature (for example, 400 degrees), When the lid material is welded after being heated, the heat of the welding causes the rapidly solidified alloy powder inside the can to reach a predetermined temperature (for example, 400 degrees) or more,
It causes deterioration of mechanical properties such as strength and hardness after processing.

FIG. 11 is a schematic view of a conventional manufacturing method for degassing while heating a capsule containing powder.
The vacuum filling method will be described below based on this. A capsule having a degassing pipe in the upper lid is made of an alloy such as Fe, Al, Cu or stainless steel. The raw material powder is filled into the capsule through a degassing tube in the air or under an inert gas atmosphere. A rubber tube for vacuuming is connected to the deaeration tube, and the inside of the capsule is deaerated by a vacuum pump. When the inside of the capsule reaches a predetermined degree of vacuum, a part of the deaeration pipe is pressed with a jig for deaeration pipe sealing while drawing a vacuum, the deaeration pipe is further cut, and the part is welded and sealed. Such a conventional method has the following problems. Since the powder is filled from a thin degassing tube, the filling takes time. After the powder is filled in the capsule, the evacuation resistance of the deaeration tube increases because the vacuum is drawn from the thin deaeration tube, and it is difficult to increase the degree of vacuum in the capsule. Especially in the lower part of the capsule, the resistance of the powder is added, and even if vacuuming is performed, it is almost the same as the body pressure,
This tendency is more remarkable as the powder is finer.

As shown in FIG. 11, there is also known a method in which a capsule filled with powder and an upper lid are welded and sealed by TIG welding, electron beam welding or the like in a vacuum container. According to this method, it is necessary to perform TIG welding in a vacuum atmosphere, and it is difficult to secure a welding surface with good welding operation and welding conditions and sealing performance. It was necessary to move the capsule or the electrode for welding, and there was a problem that the device became complicated.

[0005]

In view of the above problems of the prior art, the present invention is capable of easily degassing the inside of a powder-filled capsule, and in a short time, in a vacuum atmosphere or an inert gas atmosphere. It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for manufacturing a powder-filled capsule and a manufacturing apparatus therefor capable of sealing the powder-filled capsule.

[0006]

According to the present invention, a protrusion is formed around at least one of the tubular capsule and the lid on the contact surface between the end surface of the tubular capsule and the lid, and the lid is attached to the powder-filled capsule. The cylindrical capsule and the lid are welded and sealed by covering and applying electricity between the electrodes while applying pressure. Generally, before the capsule is filled with the powder and sealed, the capsule is evacuated to remove residual air inside the capsule, and is sealed in the vacuum state as it is or in an inert gas filled with an inert gas. A heater is placed in the lower electrode to heat the powder-filled capsule from the bottom in order to more reliably evacuate and deaerate the capsule. Further, it is composed of a step of filling the powder, a step of compacting the powder with the upper electrode, and a step of energizing and welding the powder-filled capsule and the lid while applying pressure between the electrodes. These steps naturally include processing in a vacuum or an atmosphere such as an inert gas.

Next, the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
In FIG. 1, after a powder 2 is filled in a cylindrical capsule 1, a lid 4 provided with a protrusion 3 is pressurized and energized to produce a powder-filled capsule. In FIG. 1, the protrusion is provided on the lid, but the protrusion may be provided on the cylindrical capsule side. FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged view showing that the protrusion 3 is provided at the end of the cylindrical capsule. As a specific example of the size, for example, a capsule having an outer diameter of 41 mm, an inner diameter of 31 mm, and a thickness of the upper lid 4 of 3.5 mm is used in the examples described later. or,
In FIG. 3, a protrusion is also provided on the bottom of the tubular capsule, and the bottom lid and the tubular capsule are welded by pressurizing and energizing them.
This is a capsule for powder filling.

FIG. 4 shows an example of an apparatus for producing powder-filled capsules according to the present invention, in which an upper electrode 7 and a lower electrode are provided above and below the inside of a chamber 6 connected to a vacuum pump 9 as a deaeration means. 8 is provided via a seal 10. The lower electrode is provided with an arrangement portion in which the capsule 1 filled with the powder 2 is arranged, and the upper and lower electrodes are movable so as to be close to each other (FIG. 5). A heating plate 12 is provided inside the chamber, and a heater 11 is provided inside the lower electrode. Each step will be described with reference to FIGS. A powder-filled capsule and a lid are supplied into the chamber, and a vacuum plate is used to deaerate while heating the chamber with a heating plate in the chamber. The lower electrode contains a heater,
Heat from the bottom of the powder-filled capsule (Figure 6). When the degree of vacuum rises, the upper electrode is lowered, and the powder in the powder-filled capsule is pressed and pressed (FIG. 7). Here, the upper lid is set (FIG. 8). The upper electrode is lowered again, and current is applied between the electrodes in a pressurized state to melt the protrusion and weld the powder-filled capsule and the lid (FIG. 9).

FIG. 10 shows an example of the continuous powder filling and sealing apparatus of the present invention, in which the capsule 1 is supplied into the vacuum chamber 6, the powder supplying step, the powder pressing step, the lid supplying step, the welding step and the powder filling capsule removal. A powder storage container 13 is provided at the upper part of the powder supply process. Each of the vacuum chamber and the powder storage container can be evacuated or replaced with an inert gas. Further, the movement of the capsule between the respective steps is carried out by the conveying means. This conveying means is performed by using a conveyor or a conveying path 14 formed flush with the upper surface of the lower electrode, using a comb-like conveying member having a groove for accommodating the capsule.

Both the powder storage container and the vacuum chamber are evacuated, a capsule is supplied and a certain amount of powder is filled, and then the upper electrode descends to compact the powder. A lid is supplied to lower the upper electrode. Repeatedly from pressing and pressing, energizing, taking out the powder-filled capsule, and the powder storage container may be a cyclone of the powder manufacturing apparatus or one connected to it.

The powder metal / alloy or ceramics used in the present invention is preferably a rapidly solidified powder alloy having an amorphous phase, a fine crystalline phase or a mixed phase thereof.
Any of Al group, Mg group, Ni group, Ti group, Fe group,
Alternatively, there is a rapidly solidified powder alloy made of a combination of these, but of course the present invention is not limited thereto.
A typical example of the rapidly solidified powder alloy is Al-Ni-M.
m, Al-Ni-Mm-Zr, Al-Ni-Zr, Al
-Ni-Ti, Mg-Ni-Ce, Ni-Si-B, etc. are mentioned. In addition, Mm (Misch metal) is Ce
40 to 50%, La 20 to 25%, the balance being other rare earth elements, and impurities (Mg, Al, Si, F
e) and the like. Also, a mixture of a rapidly solidified powder alloy and a commercially available alloy powder may be used. The ceramic powder is also not particularly limited. The material of the cylindrical capsule and the upper lid used in the present invention is Fe.
Al / Cu alloy and stainless steel are preferably used,
The present invention is not limited to this, and any material that can be welded by pressurization and energization may be used.

[0012]

EXAMPLES The present invention will be described below with reference to examples and comparative examples. Under the following conditions, the embodiment is the apparatus of FIGS.
When the comparative example was carried out in FIG. 11, the following results were obtained.

[0013]

[Table 1]

[0014]

[Table 2]

[0015]

[Table 3]

[0016]

According to the method of the present invention, not only the degassing of the powder-filled capsules can be performed easily and sufficiently, but also the sealing by the lid can be reliably manufactured in a short time. As a result, the plastically machined workpiece is uniform, the tensile strength, hardness, and elongation are stable, and the characteristics of the powder can be fully utilized, and the elongation of the workpiece becomes large. It also enables continuous machining of a completely closed system.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged view illustrating another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram of another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an example of the manufacturing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a state where the capsule is pressurized in the manufacturing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing one step in the manufacturing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing one step in the manufacturing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing one step in the manufacturing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing one step in the manufacturing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is another embodiment of the manufacturing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram of a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Cylindrical Capsule 2 Powder 3 Protrusion 4 Upper Lid 5 Lower Lid 6 Chamber 7 Upper Electrode 8 Lower Electrode 9 Vacuum Pump 10 Seal 11 Heater 12 Heating Plate

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A powder is filled with a protrusion formed on the periphery of at least one of the tubular capsule and the upper and lower lids on the contact surface between the end surface of the tubular capsule and the lid portion, in which at least one of the upper and lower lids is open. After that, the method for producing a powder-filled capsule in which the filled capsule and the lid are welded and sealed by applying current between the electrodes while applying pressure between the electrodes. 2. The method for producing a powder-filled capsule according to claim 1, which is hermetically sealed in a vacuum or an inert gas atmosphere. 3. The powder-filled capsule is deaerated, further pressed by an electrode, and then the powder-filled capsule and the upper lid are welded and sealed by energizing while applying pressure between the electrodes. A method for producing a powder-filled capsule according to claim 1. 4. The method for producing a powder-filled capsule according to claim 3, wherein the powder-filled capsule is heated from below to be deaerated. 5. The same chamber in which the step of filling the powder raw material in the powder storage container into a capsule, the step of pressing the powder, and the step of welding and sealing by energizing the powder-filled capsule and the lid while applying pressure between the electrodes are carried out. A method for producing powder-filled capsules, which is sequentially applied in the container. 6. An upper electrode and a lower electrode are provided on the upper and lower sides of a chamber having a deaeration means, and an arrangement portion is formed on the lower electrode in which a capsule filled with powder is arranged, and the upper and lower electrodes are close to each other. A device for manufacturing a powder-filled capsule, which is movable as described above. 7. The same chamber having a deaeration means,
A powder filling means, a pressing means, a welding means for supplying a lid to the capsule filled with the powder, and welding the capsule and the lid together are provided, and a conveying means for sequentially delivering the capsule to each of the means is provided. An apparatus for manufacturing a powder-filled capsule, which is provided.