Fine-grained tungsten carbide copper (WC-Cu) cemented carbide was sintered via spark plasma sintering at 1773K using a fine WC powder with a mean particle size of 0.11 mm. The mechanical properties were compared with tungsten carbide cobalt (WC-Co) cemented carbide and a binderless WC-sintered material. The Vickers hardness and fracture toughness obtained by the indentation fracture method for ...

Interfaces between alloys simulating binders in WC-Co cemented carbides and tungsten carbide were examined on the micro-, nano-, and atomic-scale. The precipitation of fine WC grains and η-phase occurs at the interface of the alloy with the low carbon content. The precipitation of such grains almost does not occur in the alloy with the medium-low carbon content and does not take place in the al...

Understanding the morphological evolution of tungsten carbides (WC) grains is one a few key factors to control mechanical properties cemented such as wear resistance and toughness. In this work, three-dimensional (3D) equilibrium morphology faceted WC in WC-Co system was prospected by means phase-field simulations with parameters adjusted on ab-initio calculations. To model grain surfaces, spec...

The aim of the present work is to study the effects of the nanostructured WC-20 wt. % (Fe,Co) with different ratios of iron to cobalt on the microstructure and hardness of sintered samples. Furthermore, a sample with a cobalt binder under the same condition was produced for the comparison purposes. The nanocomposite development, after different milling times, has been monitored by means of X-ra...