News

Rhodium, the rarest occurring metal.

Renishaw PLC, Gloucestershire, UK, has delivered a crucial saving for a metal additive manufacturing (AM) process that involves rhodium and platinum, two metals that are generally too expensive to use in industrial applications. However, when alloyed, weight loss at high temperatures occurs slower than pure platinum, providing industrial value.

The Curtiss-Wright Engineered Pump Division, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, Bechtel Plant Machinery, Inc., Monroeville, Pennsylvania, and Sintavia LLC, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, have collaborated to produce the first submarine component using qualified metal additive manufacturing (AM). Sintavia, a manufacturer of critical defense components, supplied an AM impeller that underwent rigorous qualification and testing at Curtiss-Wright’s facility. This partnership aims to expand the use of AM parts in naval defense applications.

Neodymium praseodymium oxide powder produced by MP Materials.

Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has played a significant role in advancing the extraction of rare earths in the U.S. Rare earths, especially neodymium and praseodymium, are essential for powerful permanent magnets used in a wide array of industries. The U.S. and allied nations are increasingly concerned about China's dominance in the rare earth market, which produces about 90% of processed rare earths. In response, the U.S., Australia, and Canada are investing heavily in their own production capabilities to secure a stable supply chain.

Lightweight Innovations for Tomorrow (LIFT), the U.S. Department of Defense-supported national advanced materials manufacturing innovation institute, operated by the American Lightweight Materials Manufacturing Innovation Institute (ALMMII), announced that it will introduce its new state-of-the-art Advanced Metallic Production and Processing Center (AMPP) in 2025 solving a critical gap in addressing advanced materials challenges across the U.S. industrial base.  

The Japan Powder Metallurgy Association (JPMA), Tokyo, Japan, awarded 8 prizes in the following categories: Development, New Design, Process Development, New Powders and Effort.

DEVELOPMENT PRIZE
Grand Prize
Development of Soft Magnetic Composite Cores with Double Pole Shoes to Enhance the Performance of Axial Flux Motors
Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.

This component is the stator core for an Axial Flux Motor (AFM) used in air cleaners. In response to the increasing emphasis on miniaturization, weight reduction, and high efficiency of motors in recent years, AFM that can achieve both thinness and high torque, is attracting attention and is expected to become widespread and replacing conventional radial flux motors made of Laminated Steel Sheets (LSS), which have the disadvantage of reducing torque when they are made thinner due to their motor structure. Compared to LSS, soft magnetic composite cores (SMC) are suitable for the three-dimensional magnetic circuit required for AFM due to their magnetic isotropic properties and high design flexibility in shape.