Patent ID: 8087565

Claim:
A process of filling a hole in a surface of a component formed of a nickel- or cobalt-base alloy, the process comprising: forming the hole to have an axial direction, a wall parallel to the axial direction and defining a cross-sectional shape of the hole perpendicular to the axial direction, and at least one interlocking feature separated from the surface of the component by the wall, the interlocking feature comprising a recess that diverges from the hole in a direction transverse to the axial direction of the hole; forming a powder mixture by mixing particles of at least a base alloy and a second alloy, the base alloy constituting about 30 to about 90 weight percent of the powder mixture, the second alloy containing a sufficient amount of a melting point depressant to have a lower melting temperature than the base alloy; combining the powder mixture with a binder and then compacting the combined powder mixture and binder to form a compacted preform; heating the compacted preform to remove the binder and form a sintered preform; placing the sintered preform within the hole so that a perimeter thereof is surrounded by the wall of the hole, wherein the perimeter defines a cross-sectional shape of the sintered preform that corresponds to the cross-sectional shape of the hole and has dimensions to achieve a clearance of not greater than 200 micrometers between the perimeter of the sintered preform and the wall of the hole; and then diffusion braze bonding the sintered preform within the hole to form a brazement within the hole comprising the particles of the base alloy dispersed in a matrix formed by the second alloy, wherein during the diffusion braze bonding step the sintered preform flows from the perimeter thereof into the recess and following the diffusion braze bonding step the brazement has a protrusion that extends into the recess and increases the shear surface area of a bond between the brazement and the wall of the hole.