Effects of process parameters on the gelcasting green strength and sintered density of stainless steel

An approach for fabricating sintered stainless steel with high green strength and sintered density by gelcasting was presented. The effects of gelcasting process parameters such as monomer content, ratio of monomer/cross-linker in premixed solution, solid loading of slurry, and initiator content on the green strength and sintered density of stainless steel were investigated. The results show that the appropriate process parameters of 316L stainless steel gelcasting are as follows, monomer mass fraction 18%-22%, ratio of monomer/cross-linker 90:1-240:1, solid loading 52%-55%, and initiator content 0.8%-1.4% (based on the mass of monomer). Under the above condition, complex-shaped stainless steel parts with green strength more than 30.0 MPa, sintered density more than 97% and mechanical properties slightly less than those of parts by metal powder injection molding (MIM) were obtained.