Powder preparation technology is the basis of modern powder metallurgy and product industrialization, and is the forerunner of the development of related emerging industries. The wide application of high-performance and low-cost powder manufacturing technology has promoted the progress of powder metallurgy technology, which has become a very active frontier field of material science and engineering technology research. The powder produced by atomization method has accounted for 80% of the total powder in the world today, of which the powder produced by gas atomization method accounts for 30% ~ 50%, that is to say, nearly half of it is completed by gas atomization technology. The sphericity, particle size (powder diameter), particle size distribution concentration, metallization and density, surface quality of the powder produced by atomization method are incomparable to those of traditional chemical pulverizing method. The powder obtained by atomized pulverizing method for manufacturing raw materials for electric contacts has the following advantages: the powder particle size is small and the distribution is concentrated, the finest can reach 10btm(1250 mesh), which is helpful to refine the material structure; Metallized and spheroidized powder has good fluidity, and natural grain boundaries can effectively inhibit the grain growth during the production and use of the material. The powder made by electromagnetic stirring melted in an induction furnace has uniform alloy component composition, high density and compact, it can ensure the quality of the final product; the metallized particles are not easy to agglomerate and stick, and the invisible loss is small. Due to the advantages of stable production process, less uncontrollable factors, high product quality, no chemical reagent consumption, environmental friendliness, no pollution, high production efficiency, low manufacturing cost, it has been widely used in the industry. It has become a widely used technology in the domestic electrical contact material manufacturing industry, and is also an important means of product quality upgrading and new product research and development.

(1) water atomization. Water atomization is widely used in the preparation of Au, Ag, Pd, Pt, Co, Cu, Ni, Fe and Zn powders. Its particle size distribution ranges from 10m to millimeter, irregular shape, poor sphericity, good press formability, small equipment investment scale, low operation cost, recyclable water, its oxygen content ≤ 0.4, and can be reduced and removed through post-process reduction, the production efficiency can reach 500 kg/min, but it is not suitable for active metals such as Al.

(2) hydrocarbon atomization. Similar to the characteristics of water atomization, but no oxidation, better sphericity, is conducive to the production of fine Al powder.

(3) gas atomization. Gas atomization is widely used in the preparation of Sn, Pb, A1, Bi, Cu, AAu, c0, Ni, Fe and zn powders. Its particle size distribution is from 10m (related to alloy types) to 200/tm, with good sphericity, good density and fluidity, low oxygen content, production efficiency of 50 kg/min, and the gases used are mainly N and Ar.

(4) air atomization. Air atomization is widely used in the preparation of Al, Sn, Pb, Cu-Sn, and Cu-Zn powders. It is similar to gas atomization and has low operating cost, but has high oxygen content and poor sphericity.