Powder metallurgy has become a crucial part of manufacturing in the thermal processing industry, not just in North America, but across the globe. That’s why it’s vitally important that workers in this field have the opportunity to gather in one place to discuss the latest trends and innovations in the powder metallurgical sector.
For years, the WorldPM conference has provided this service to the industry, and for the first time in six years, WorldPM will be in North America.
WorldPM, presented by the Metal Powder Industries Federation (MPIF), is the largest global powder metallurgy and particulate materials event of the year. On June 25-29, 2026, the PM industry will come together in Montreal, Canada, at, not only for WorldPM, but for two more conferences as well. These conferences will be sintered together into one global event. The other shows making up this hat trick of PM are AMPM2026 and Tungsten2026.
Montreal is a charming destination that is quickly becoming one of North America’s leaders in cutting edge innovation — thanks to the booming tech scene powered by the city’s creativity and affordability. Montreal is one of the top destinations in North America for international association conferences, according to the International Congress and Convention Association.
The WorldPM2026/AMPM2026/Tungsten2026 conferences are the primary source for metal powder technology transfer and is host to the largest annual North American exhibit showcasing leading suppliers of metal powders, particulate materials, and metal additive manufacturing (AM)/3D printing process equipment, powders, and products. This meeting is the premier conference in this field and will draw participants from industry, government laboratories, and academic institutions.
The conference will offer a plethora of innovative programs, including a keynote speech, oral and poster technical presentations, industry awards, and, of course, an exhibition filled with companies demonstrating new concepts and equipment.
AMPM2026 is the leading technical conference focusing on metal additive manufacturing in the Americas and is a hub for technology transfer for professionals from every part of the industry. AMPM2026 will feature worldwide industry experts presenting the latest technology developments in this fast-growing field.
Tungsten2026 is dedicated to tungsten, refractory, and hard materials in the Americas. This event serves as a vital platform for professionals across the industry to share knowledge and foster innovation. Tungsten2026 will feature leading experts presenting the latest advancements and research in this essential field.
To prepare for these important conferences, Thermal Processing has compiled highlights from the technical sessions that readers might find helpful in planning their WorldPM schedule:
Friday, June 26
- A High-Performance Ni-based Superalloy for Extreme Environment Applications. Harikrishnan Rajendran, The Boeing Company. ATI 1700(TM) is a high-performance, nickel-based superalloy engineered to enhance the performance of additively manufactured components for extreme environments. The alloy delivers exceptional strength at temperatures approaching 1,800°F, outperforming many other nickel-based superalloys suitable for additive manufacturing, and demonstrates resistance to strain-age cracking and corrosion as validated during the Boeing DOE-ARPA E HITEMMP program. While initial development focused on additive manufacturing routes, we have expanded the effort by consolidating ATI 1700(TM) powder via hot isostatic pressing and further refining the microstructure through various thermomechanical processes. Preliminary mechanical testing of these PM variants across multiple temperatures has been completed and ongoing testing aims to provide a detailed comparison between powder metallurgy and additively manufactured properties. The efforts support qualification of PM ATI 1700(TM) for extreme environment structural applications.
- Influence of Sintering – Homogenizing Conditions and Rapid Cooling on Microstructure and Properties of Sinter – Hardened PM Parts. Ravindra Kumar Malhotra, Malhotra Engineers. Sinter-Hardening process is a combination of PM Primary process of sintering and secondary process of hardening. Conventional hardening via homogenizing in controlled atmosphere and oil quenching after completing sintering needed two separate furnaces, which cause bottlenecks. The advent of sinter-hardening steels gave sinter-hardening process for PM parts needing subsequent hardening in one furnace with special cooling features utilizing same protective sintering atmosphere. The result of the sinter-hardening process is dependent on different sub processes such as lubricant removal, pre-sintering, sintering, and homogenizing prior to rapid cooling and post cooling. There will be influence of cooling rates achieved during rapid cooling coupled with alloy customization for desired part properties. There is a role of sintering fixtures too which may hinder with free cooling as a tradeoff for maintaining critical dimensions or flatness. Limitations of multilayer loading reduces sinter-hardening outputs as compared to normal sintering from the same furnace. A dream sinter-hardening furnace would work with similar process parameters as would a normal sintering operation from the same furnace giving identical throughputs. The only difference should be high-low running of the cooling blowers as per design. Comparison of set of sintering parameters and thermal profile with end results on sinter-hardening parts would be an in-depth review of process equipment design and powder to achieve best results of microstructure and properties of PM parts for demanding applications with rated life cycle.
- Reactive Liquid-Phase Sintering of TiB2-MoB2 Ceramics. Jhewn-Kuang Chen, National Taipei University of Technology. Titanium diboride (TiB2) is a promising ultra-high-temperature ceramic for aerospace and defense applications due to its high hardness, thermal stability, and electrical conductivity; however, poor sinterability and intrinsic brittleness limit its practical use. Molybdenum diboride (MoB2) exhibits improved sinterability and toughness but reduced hardness when used alone. In this work, a reactive liquid-phase sintering strategy was employed to fabricate TiB2-MoB2 ceramics at a relatively low temperature of 1,550°C. Optimized compositions exhibited refined microstructures and reduced porosity, achieving a maximum relative density of 94.2% for Ti0.5Mo0.5B2. The highest hardness of 22.5 GPa was obtained for Ti0.75Mo0.25B2, while a balanced mechanical performance of 323.4 MPa flexural strength and 8.9 MPa·m0.5 fracture toughness was achieved. Toughening mechanisms include crack deflection, grain-boundary pinning, and liquid-phase-assisted densification. Density functional theory calculations confirm enhanced metallic bonding from MoB2 dissolution into the TiB2 lattice, contributing to improved toughness and ductility.
- Retained Austenite Formation and Its Impact on Mechanical Properties of Sinter-hardened and Heat-treated Low Alloy Steels. Amber Tims, PMT, North American Höganös Co. Martensitic transformation is a primary objective for sinter-hardenable and heat-treated powdered metal (PM) materials. Equally important is the stabilization of austenite within the metallurgical matrix at room temperature. Retained austenite can significantly influence impact strength, ductility, and fatigue resistance of PM components. It can also detrimentally affect dimensional stability and hardness due to its inclination to transform to bainite or martensite when subject to thermal variations. Therefore, precise control over the quantity of retained austenite is essential for optimizing both wear performance and impact resistance in these materials. This paper will evaluate various sinter-hardened and heat-treated alloys to assess the relationship between retained austenite and mechanical properties and the effect of tempering conditions.
Saturday, June 27
- Active HIP Atmospheres -The Next Lever for HIP Processing. Anders Magnusson, Quintus Technologies. When using Hot Isostatic Pressing (HIP) to optimize the reliability of mission-critical components in aerospace, medical, energy, racing, etc., an inert gas pressure medium is typically preferred to avoid introducing unknown variables to the process. Due to this, inert, high-purity argon is the standard gas for transmitting pressure and heat from the system to the processed components. The most common exception to this rule is for densifying nitride materials such as silicon nitride where nitrogen gas is used to prevent the nitride from dissociating at the high temperatures required for sintering and full densification of the material system. However, outside these two main HIP atmosphere scenarios, the use of specific atmosphere gases in the HIP system is generally considered experimental. Several specific applications have historically been explored with varying success, including active carburizing atmosphere for case hardening or for retaining alloy carbon, using partial pressure oxygen to stabilize oxides, or to use a nitrogen atmosphere for pressure assisted nitridation case hardening. The latter has, due to recent advances in clean-HIP processing, proven to be a promising candidate for the in-situ creation of a wear-resistant surface on, for example, medical implants needed for both increased wear resistance and as diffusion barrier for metal ions leaving the implants provoking metal hypersensitivity. Building upon these possibilities, this paper takes a further look into the integration of process steps that enhance both productivity and component properties within the HIP cycle.
- Transferred Arc Plasma – Wire Atomization of Refractory Metals. Joseph Tunick Strauss, HJE Company, Inc. Processing of refractory metals via additive manufacturing enables the production of parts with refractory metal properties in shapes not attainable by any other manufacturing method. For laser and e-beam AM processes, this requires that the refractory metal be available as powder with a spherical morphology. Current production of spherical refractory metal powders includes conventional non-transferred arc plasma atomization, EIGA-type and plasma melted gas atomization, and plasma spheroidization of nascent powders. Past studies have shown that transferred arc plasma-wire atomization has the potential to process conventional materials (i.e. stainless steels) while operating at a lower specific energy consumption. This paper presents the preliminary trial results of processing W, Mo, and Ta via transferred arc plasma-wire atomization.
- Optimization of Sinter-Brazing Process Parameters for Repeatable High-Strength Joints for Mass-Produced Complex PM Components. Sudarshan Palve, Egearz Pvt Ltd. Sinter-brazing is an efficient technique for assembling multiple complex components together. A combination of sintering and brazing into a single thermal cycle enables efficient joining of complex components with reduced process time and cost. However, achieving consistent brazed joint quality, mechanical strength, and controlled dimensions of the components is challenging. This paper presents a systematic approach to improve the sinter-brazing process by optimizing key parameters such as RM selection, atmosphere control, thermal profile, and joint design. Experimental trials were conducted using modified furnace parameters, improving wetting behavior to enhance brazed-joint integrity. Advanced characterization techniques including metallography and breaking load performance evaluation were used to assess the effectiveness of the improvements. The optimized process demonstrated significant enhancements in bond strength with improved dimensional stability and repeatability. The outcome of this study provides a practical framework of a robust and efficient sinter-brazing process.
- Grain Growth Control by Niobium Additions in Cryomilled and Spark-Plasma Sintered Aluminum Alloys. Mathieu Brochu, McGill University. Niobium additions were investigated as a way of preventing excessive grain growth by pinning grain boundaries during sintering in nanostructured aluminum alloys. Two Al-Nb powders and one Al powder were cryomilled, annealed, and spark-plasma sintered, followed by characterization using X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy to determine grain size and other microstructural changes during processing. It was found that small niobium additions were effective in avoiding grain growth without modifying sintering behavior, while alloys containing higher amounts of niobium were more difficult to densify because of their increased strength at high temperature.
Sunday, June 28
- Compact Vertical Furnace for Iron Powder Reduction and Annealing: Minimum Floor Footprint, Maximizing Energy Efficiency Using Low Reaction Gas and Ensuring Uniform High-Quality Output. Ravindra Kumar Malhotra, Malhotra Engineers. Reduction and annealing of iron powder in a vertical furnace will improve powder quality as compared to a conventional horizontal sheet-belt furnace. In a horizontal furnace, the reducing gas hydrogen or cracked ammonia passes over a powder bed of fixed height with limited penetration through powder particle spaces. As the reduction and annealing process takes place, there is particle-to-particle bonding commonly known as cake formation. In a vertical retort, the powder is completely filled, allowing reducing gas to pass through the space between all powder particles. In the vertical furnace, gravity-and-screw-feeder-assisted powder movement has inherent attrition taking place. This attrition would not allow particle-to-particle bonding or cake formation. Slight vibration can further increase attrition, therefore powder will have more space for gas movement and better oxide reduction of each iron particle. The retort will be heated by cylindrical embedded heaters giving uniform heating around the retort. The four-zone (84kW) furnace will have 3 cylindrical heaters per zone (21kW). The hot shell height can be controlled below 5 meters. The cooling system will also have cylindrical jackets of SS and MS covering a height of less than 4 meters. Spiral path water flow within each jacket will be metered separately. This will ensure the adjustable cooling rate to control powder properties. The design temperature of this furnace will be 1,000°C for iron powder. With this setup, different furnaces can handle a variety of process cycles of powders on the shop floor. This furnace should give outputs of about 8-10 tons per day.
- Integrated Production of High-Purity Copper Powder via Novel Vertical Continuous Chip Oxidation and In-Line Reduction for Precision Sintered PM Components. Ravindra Kumar Malhotra, Malhotra Engineers. A novel vertical continuous oxidizer processes machining chips (0.5-3mm) or shredded fine copper wires in to high surface area input for replacing traditional mill-scale used in production of sub-micron reduced copper powder by pulverization-reduction process. Conventional mill-scale a by-product of copper extrusion process has refractory fines and oils as contaminants. This new method using a vertical oxidizer will eliminate any such impurities. There is a distinct advantage in using this method to convert non-usable coarse powder from a water atomization plant into a premium powder grade. The loss-making recycling of coarse powder in melting can be diverted as good input for reduced powder production upscaling. The sheet belt reduction furnace used in the plant can handle both powder types, atomized as well as reduced. The dryer section of the reduction furnace can be used for preheating copper scales before reduction and then annealing. The improvised reduction muffle will have hot nitrogen curtains in the beginning and end. The reduction hydrogen or cracked ammonia gas also will be preheated. Reduction and annealing sections will be separated by a reverse parabolic baffle for gas dam. This will ensure reduction side gas will not diffuse in annealing gas thereby purity of reduced powder will be enhanced. The cooling jackets with controlled spiral path water flow will give uniform cooling. Additional nitrogen gas curtains in the cooling jackets will protect powder cake color and purity needed for precision PM parts.
- Effect of Supersolidus Liquid Phase Sintering Conditions on the Bonding of Particles, Microstructure, and Mechanical Properties of AlSi10Mg Alloy. Julien Moreau, École de Technologie Supérieure. This study investigates the effect of supersolidus liquid phase sintering conditions on AlSi10Mg powder bonding, microstructure formation, and the resulting mechanical properties of the samples. Sintering was conducted in the 550-579°C range with a holding duration of 2 hours. The sintering included heating (varied between 5 or 15 hours) and cooling (varied between 12 or 70 hours). All thermal cycles — heating, cooling, and sintering dwell — were performed under a nitrogen atmosphere. The result indicates that higher sintering temperatures and faster heating/cooling rates lead to a lower fraction of AlN. In contrast, lower sintering temperatures or slow heating promoted the development of a thicker AlN shell around the powder particles. This shell inhibited the bonding of the powder and prevented densification via the sintering process. Sintering in the 571-579°C range, with heating during 5 hours, constitutes a more favorable window for the densification of AlSi10Mg under a nitrogen atmosphere. At 571°C, the alloy exhibits fine Al grains and small Si particles uniformly distributed within the Al matrix, resulting in high hardness. At 575°C, grain coarsening and partial coalescence of Si particles occur, leading to a reduction in hardness. At 579°C, grains become larger, while Si evolves into elongated structures that surround the Al grains, improving overall hardness. After T6 heat treatment, Si particles and Al grain structure remain stable; however, the hardness nearly doubles due to precipitation strengthening.
- A Double Sand-Sealed Electric Kiln with Inconel-Sheet Fabricated Retort for Production of Reaction-Sintered and Nitride-Bonded High-Strength Silicon Carbide Parts. Ravindra Kumar Malhotra, Malhotra Engineers. A double sand-sealed 21 kW kiln with a fully welded Inconel-sheet fabricated retort has been designed for 1,250°C temperature. The three cubic feet (retort volume) kiln under construction is for trials of reaction-sintering processes, especially nitride-bonded high-strength silicon carbide parts. Nitrogen gas is needed above 1,200°C for silicon-nitride formation from silicon powder to be use as bond for silicon carbide molded, compacted or vibration cast parts being sintered. Nitrogen or any other process gas is released inside the retort base itself. A ceramic monolithic precast block with well distributed holes has been engineered to cover the entire charge area. Uniformly spent gas and binder vapors are led out of the retort using a vent pipe of suitable height and diameter to increase dwell time of heated reaction gas inside the retort. This gas dwell penetrates the green compacts to complete the nitriding reaction without any air ingress from any part of the kiln. The outer surface of the circular retort is electrically heated uniformly as per the desired ramping cycle selected in the kiln monitoring system. The start and end of process reaction gas flow is interlocked as per the gas reaction time needed. Suitable kiln furniture is designed for the parts to be sintered. Green parts can be powder compacted, slip cast, or 3-D printed. Even a single large 3-D printed part can be reaction-sintered. The retort can be removed to increase kiln volume for non-critical work using single sand-seal of the kiln body. The electric terminals of the kiln are kept gas tight using suitable gland packing technique.
Monday, June 29
- Novel Multi-Burner Exothermic Lubricant Removal System with Metal Roof Embedded Heating for High-Throughput Mesh-Belt Iron PM Sintering Furnaces. Ravindra Kumar Malhotra, Malhotra Engineers. Exothermic gas fired lubricant removal systems employing multiple burners are commonly used for iron-based powder metallurgy (PM) parts in mesh-belt furnaces. The air-to-gas ratio of each burner is adjusted for many purposes: lubricant combustion, generation of exothermic gas, and green part heating. In the balancing act of firing for heating and exo-gas production, there is a mismatch. The roof shape and its gap from charge is critical for functioning of the exothermic delube system. Introduction of a metal roof instead of refractory blocks improved sintering results significantly. Embedded electric heaters in the roof would reduce heating load of burners. This change will stabilize exo-gas production. Uniform top radiation heating of green parts from metal roof will make this system robust and easy to operate. New hybrid lubricant removal systems will improve carbon control, part density, and surface finish of heavy multi-layer sintered parts.
- Effect of Vacuum Conditions on the Densification and Chemical Composition of Sinter Based Additively Manufactured Ti-6Al-4V. Giorgio Valsecchi, TAV Vacuum Furnaces SPA. Sinter based additive manufacturing (SBAM) technologies offer a cost-effective alternative to conventional methods for producing complex titanium geometries. However, the thermal processing of reactive metals like Titanium Grade 5 (Ti-6Al-4V) presents severe metallurgical challenges. The material’s high affinity for interstitial elements, specifically oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon at elevated temperatures necessitates rigorous atmospheric control to prevent alpha-case formation, embrittlement, and loss of ductility. This study investigates the critical role of sintering atmosphere by processing MoldJet fabricated Ti-6Al-4V green parts under distinct conditions including high vacuum, medium vacuum, and controlled partial pressures of argon. Comprehensive analysis of the sintered samples included Archimedes density measurements, interstitial chemical analysis, and mechanical testing. The study aims to define operational windows that minimize interstitial contamination, providing the data necessary to optimize the trade-off between component quality and production costs.
