Fabrication

The part is produced to net shape with no secondary machining operations needed. The high material ductility of the special aluminum PM alloy, combined with the precise positioning of the tooled-in assembly holes, enables assembly of the heat sink without the need for attachment screws. There's a unique PM-only "tower design" providing optimized heat "chimneys" to remove heat from specific areas. The part is compacted using a three lower level tooling design. Extremely large thickness variations exist within this product. Elongation is 15%.

Results

Using conventional PM to create this component resulted in a net shape product that eliminated the need to machine for positional holes and flatness on contact surfaces. Additionally, the overall process is more cost effective than die casting.