Atomiser Development
PSI’s first atomiser, the HERMIGA© Mini, produced a few kilograms of powder and was intended to be used by universities and in the research departments of engineering companies for R&D into fine powder applications. A sales visit to Japan had uncovered a market demand for these R&D atomisers to be accommodated within the four meter repeat distance between floors in a typical office block, because factory floor space in Japan was so expensive due to the high price of land.
The challenge, therefore, was to build an atomiser that would fit a small office space. Typically, atomisers need to be tall to give the powder particles plenty of time to cool down as they descend downwards in the process chamber. In addressing this challenge, the first generation of HERMIGA© Minis was born. The standard HERMIGA© range of vacuum/inert gas atomisers has developed over the years and now includes production-scale units capable of outputs of over 2,000 tonnes per year, whilst still retaining the performance and quality capabilities of the smaller R&D and pilot-scale atomisers.

Discover the Future of Metal Powder Production
Now that these capabilities are considered standard throughout the range, recent development activity at PSI has been focused on the capital expenditure and operational expenditure considerations of the company’s atomiser users.
Understanding companies after they have satisfied themselves of the powder quality characteristics, are concerned about their return on investment and the unit cost of ‘in-size’ powder, Detailed engineering discussions are thus carried out to ensure that the ’sweet spot‘ in atomiser specification is achieved to match the customer’s downstream production requirements. Over the last decade PSI has therefore devoted much of its resources to the development of features designed to achieve these objectives.

Discover the Excellence of VIGA Systems by PSI
Unlock the full potential of your metal powder production with PSI’s Vacuum Inert Gas Atomisation (VIGA) systems. At the forefront of innovation, our VIGA systems are engineered to deliver unparalleled quality, consistency, and efficiency, meeting the rigorous demands of today’s advanced manufacturing industries. A few additional developments over the years:

Heated Atomising Gas
When the atomising gas is heated to, for example, 500°C, median particle size may be reduced from 20 μm to 15 μm in a steel powder. This may be of no great import to a manufacturer of powder intended for Additive Manufacturing or HIP, but it transforms the economics for a MIM powder producer.

Quick Turnaround
Systems have been developed to ensure both a fast change of consumable refractories in tundish design and the rapid cooling of collected powder and chamber internals to allow operator access to unload product and prepare the next melt.

Fast Cleaning
The ability to quickly and thoroughly clean the complete system between compositional changes is essential when a company is looking to get maximum value from its investment. Rapid access to the atomising and melt chambers in the Hermiga units is facilitated by a hydraulic clamping system.
Cold Crucible Technology
Over the last few years PSI has invested heavily in ’cold crucible‘ technology, meaning the ability to melt and atomise reactive metals such as titanium. Cold crucible or Induction Skull Melting (ISM) – the preparation of the melt in water cooled copper crucibles – is technically complex but feasible, and several atomisers based on this technology are no win operation. PSI believes that the only viable method of producing quality titanium powder at a price to enable its use outside of aerospace and into the automotive and medical sectors is by the use of low-cost titanium feed stocks and cold crucible techniques to prepare and refine melts in preparation for atomisation.
In the past five years, Additive Manufacturing has grown at a rapid rate in the field of titanium and it has become apparent that CP and ’6/4‘ grades of titanium will need modification to alloy compositions to meet the special solidification characteristics encountered in AM processes. To this end PSI have developed cold crucible equipment to enable the production of novel titanium alloys by the continuous casting and extraction of circular billets. This meets the demand for melt stock of novel compositions that the primary titanium manufacturers are not currently ready to address.
Projects & Collaborations
DEMAND-REPAIR
Exploration of novel advanced technologies and innovative titanium powders to repair next-gen aero-engine components in the field. Development of atomised titanium alloy powders with microstructures beneficial for HVAF and cold spray processes.