• Transactions of Materials Processing
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• v.16 no.3 s.93
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• pp.210-214
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• 2007

Manufacturing bulk nanostructured materials with least grain growth from initial powders is challenging because of the bottle neck of bottom-up methods using the conventional powder metallurgy via compaction and sintering. In the study, densification behavior of nano Cu powders during pressureless sintering was investigated using an in-situ optical dilatometer technique. The initial heating and steady temperature stages during the sintering of nano Cu powder compacts were observed. At the initial heating stage, the powder compact has many porosities and full densification needs high temperature and/or high pressure sintering. In the experimental analysis, changes in geometry and density were measured and discussed for optimal consolidation and densification by the in-situ optical dilatometer.