Traditional and additive manufacturing of a new Tungsten heavy alloy alternative

A new class of rapid-sintering, fine-grained alloys recently developed is being commercially scaled through both traditional and additive manufacturing approaches. This paper discusses the scientific underpinnings of these new alloys and their processing, specifically for a W-based alloy as an alternative to Tungsten Heavy Alloy (WHA). This new alloy offers similar density and sintering temperatures to traditional WHA, but with a fine, thermally-stable microstructure that has the potential for higher temperature operation and significantly higher strength as compared to WHAs. The new alloy can be manufactured through established traditional approaches (e.g. press and sinter) and also through a recently developed 3D printing approach.