Cu-Sn Alloy Infiltrated 316L Stainless Steel Composites

A new method to produce P/M 316L stainless steel by infiltrating Cu90Sn10 alloy was studied.The effect of different pressures and infiltrating temperatures on the properties and structure of the material was evaluated.The results show that it is possible to produce 316L stainless steel by using the infiltration technology.The relative density reached above 98% of the theoretical value,provided that the skeleton’s porosity was controlled at 18%-22%.After infiltration,the hardness of the 316L stainless steel increased from 49 HRB to 88 HRB.Also,the corrosion resistance increased.The corrosion potential reached -212 mV,close to the level of as cast 316L stainless steel.The hardness of infiltrated composite of the same density decreased with increase in initial skeleton density.It was necessary to prevent the egregious growing of the crystal while the infiltrating temperature was too high.