Electric motor design is about more than just reducing cost -- it’s about the chance to get innovative and exceed performance expectations.
If you’re already experimenting with new electric motor solutions that are a little "different,” consider incorporating powder metallurgy (PM) into your plan. Whether you’re looking for electric motor efficiency or cost reduction, chances are a PM solution exists.
Use this hub as a resource for understanding the advantages of powder metallurgy for motor applications vs. competing technologies like electrical steel laminations. Below you can learn more about the untapped potential powder metallurgy holds for motor makers -- and how you can use it to push the boundaries of your design.
Using powder metal parts to cut costs is nothing new. Using powder metal components to further the “electrification” of transportation and other electromagnetic applications is the new frontier for driving performance and cost-efficiency to new heights.
In the case of transportation, these opportunities go far beyond the traditional automobile. Powder metallurgy processes and materials are seeing more use in:
Powder metal materials and processes can optimize both AC and DC motors -- everything from axial flux motors to magnetic torque tunnels. Basically, anything that needs to be small and efficient needs to include metal powder parts.
Resource: 3 Trends in Manufacturing Auto Parts: Does Powder Metal Have a Place?
A powder metal part is born when premixed iron alloy is pressed into a desired shape to produce 3D structures. Because it’s a material-efficient, net-shape process, it’s dramatically easier and more efficient to design with powder metal vs. machining or another subtractive process.
Think about how engineers place electric car motors on the front or rear axle -- space is at a premium. Today it’s possible to redesign the motor with powdered metal components to use space more efficiently. You can use the extra space to include other components or just make the entire product smaller and lighter!
Advanced powder metallurgy manufacturers are here to help e-motor designers meet the increasing demand for smaller electric and hybrid motors.
Resource: Electric Motor Efficiency & 4 Other Uses for Soft Magnetic Composite
Manufacturers are committing to further optimizing electric drive components to reduce weight in e-vehicles.
A smaller motor is naturally lighter. Using fewer and smaller components is where powder metal shines.
Resource: A Groundbreaking Rotor Material
Developments in ultra-high-temperature sintering coupled with advanced materials can create solenoids and relays used in actuators that need more rapid response times.
Additionally, rotors used in brushless DC motors can achieve high magnetic performance when you use sintered soft magnetic powders.
Resource: What Is Sintered Soft Magnetic Material?
Soft magnetic materials are the perfect match for motors and stators. They possess competitive magnetic properties, but with higher electrical resistivity.
Use one of the many unique grades of soft magnetic composite as your new electric motor material to attain the highest frequencies possible.
Cutting costs for a growing variety of pressed and sintered motor components remains the heart of powder metallurgy.
If your current design is cumbersome and producing excessive scrap, consider a redesign with powder metal. PM produces a more compact design with virtually no leftover material -- scrap waste rarely exceeds 3%.
Sometimes powder metallurgy can even reduce the number of parts needed in an assembly traditionally made with electrical lamination steel.
Resource: Soft Magnetic Composites: A Visual Crash Course on Improving Motor Efficiency
In the race to innovate, electric motor designers no longer need a “good enough” solution, they need a great solution. Powder metallurgy’s benefits go hand in hand with cutting-edge design.
How can Horizon help you brainstorm a solution? Share your design challenges via the form, and an expert engineer will get back to you shortly.
Fran Hanejko is an industry-leading expert who works with Horizon as our Senior Advanced Materials Engineer. Fran has decades of experience in powder metallurgy, including managing customer applications for a world-leading raw material supplier. He graduated from Drexel University in 1974 with a master’s degree in materials engineering.
Contact Fran with your materials questions by filling out the form on this page.
The evolution of powder metal (PM) bearings, and ultimately modern powder metallurgy, dates back to the late 1920s when the Chrysler Corporation needed a higher strength bearing for the clutch of their new inline 6-cylinder engines. During this time, they developed a sintered copper, tin, and graphite bearing with 25% porosity which was then filled with oil via vacuum impregnation. This provided greater load carrying capabilities than existing materials. Chrysler was awarded a patent on the material and processing and the modern PM industry was born.
Sintering is a powder metallurgy processing step with plenty of untapped potential.
We’ve previously discussed how high-temperature sintering can take your DC electromagnetic component’s properties to a level conventional sintering can’t match. Through recent advances in powder metallurgy -- like ultra-high-temperature sintering (UHTS) -- an even greater leap forward is possible:
All manufacturing processes and technologies have their share of pros and cons. Yet, when it comes to powder metallurgy, few processes have changed for the better in a relatively short period of time.
Today, the advantages of powder metallurgy rival many conventional manufacturing technologies -- even machining -- when it comes to the production of high quantities.
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