This was announced on 28th June during PowderMet2010, in Hollywood, Florida, USA.
Originally introduced in the late 1960s, VVT systems began using PM parts in North American internal combustion engines in 2000. The technology assists automakers to meet environmental and fuel-efficiency standards by advancing or retarding the timing of the intake or exhaust valves. VVT allows cam timing to change, which results in improved engine efficiency and power over a wider range of engine RPMs.
According to the MPIF, the PM industry supplies an estimated 40 million PM steel parts for VVT systems annually in North America, a number that is projected to grow to 70 million by 2015. Most current VVT systems contain three complex PM parts, a vane rotor, sprocket, and thrust plate, weighing about one pound per system. Making parts for VVT systems via PM offers substantial cost savings over machining from wrought steel, as well as thickness tolerances with a precision in the range of 30 microns.
