Meltingbased

Meltingbased is a term used to describe manufacturing and materials-processing methods that rely on melting a material to a liquid state in order to shape, cast, join, or alter its properties. The concept is commonly contrasted with solid-state processing, which uses materials while they remain below their melting point.

Typical meltingbased activities include metal casting (such as sand casting and investment casting), glass forming, and polymer melt processing (for example extrusion and injection molding). In metal additive manufacturing, energy input melts feedstock to deposit material layer by layer. Localized melting is also central to welding and brazing, where a filler or base material is melted to create a joint.

Key considerations in meltingbased processes are temperature control, melt chemistry, oxidation protection, and the management of the solidification behavior that sets the final microstructure. Process variables such as cooling rate, mold design, and atmosphere influence porosity, segregation, and residual stresses.

Advantages of meltingbased methods include access to complex geometries, uniform alloying, and rapid production cycles. Challenges include high energy demand, corrosion at the melt interface, introduction of impurities, and defects from improper solidification, such as shrinkage and porosity.

In literature, the term is sometimes used interchangeably with molten-state processing or liquid-state processing, though terminology varies by field. Meltingbased methods complement solid-state techniques like powder metallurgy, diffusion bonding, and amorphous- or ceramic-based processing.