Dick, Bob, Mark, et al- First the
disclaimer- I`m not a metallurgist, materials engineer, or anything
approaching those professions- But my job at a large shipyard has
afforded me the opportunity to learn a few esoteric metalworking facts.
Sintering basically involves compacting metal powders into precision
dies under great pressure (30,000 - 60,000 psi), then heating the
resulting parts to below the melting point of the material, "fusing"
them. Silicon
bronze is an alloy of copper and the non-metallic element silicon, with
smaller amounts of other metals. Any good dictionary
can help clarify the differences in silicon, silicone, and silica.
If you`re interested in the sintering process, this site has a " not too
technical" description. www.sterlingsintered.com/sintered-metal-al.htm
I hope I haven`t bored anyone, or insulted anyone`s intelligence.
Hal Morton Pascagoula,
MS
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