PROCESS FOR REDUCING NON-UNIFORMITIES IN THE DENSITY OF SINTERED MATERIALS

摘要

There is disclosed a pre-sintering process for reducing non-uniformities in the density of a sintered material comprising (a) providing a mixture of (i) a first sinterable material containing a contaminant the presence of which during sintering of the first sinterable material results in a higher vapor pressure than would occur during sintering of pure first sinterable material and (ii) a second material having a higher affinity for the contaminant than does the first sinterable material; and (b) heating the mixture at a temperature and for a time sufficient to allow the second material to at least partly mitigate the propensity of the contaminant to raise the vapor pressure during the sintering of the first sinterable material. Other embodiments are also disclosed.