N. V. Isaeva

Sparking plasma sintering of tungsten carbide nanopowders

Spark Plasma Sintering studies of the high-speed consolidation of pure tungsten carbide WC nanopowders have been carried out. The influence of the initial size of the WC nanoparticles and modes of their receiption the density, structural parameters, and mechanical properties of tungsten carbide are studied. Samples of high-density nanostructured tungsten carbide with high hardness (up to 31–34 GPa) and an increased crack resistance (4.3–5.2 MPa m1/2) are obtained. It is found that the effect of accelerating tungsten carbide nanopowder sintering under conditions of high-speed heating is associated with the acceleration of diffusion along grain boundaries in the sintered material. It is shown that the nonmonotonic dependence of the optimal sintering temperature on the initial grain size is caused by a change in grain-boundary diffusion coefficient in conditions of abnormal grain growth. It is found that the size of abnormally large grains in spark plasma sintering depends on the volume fraction of particles of the nonstoichiometric phase.

Preparation of nanopowders of carbides and hard-alloy mixtures applying low-temperature plasma

The preparation of nanodimensional powders of tungsten carbides, as well as other transitionmetal carbides, using plasma-chemical reduction synthesis are investigated. The main regularities of preparing powders of specified dispersity and composition are revealed. Characteristic particle sizes of carbides are 40–80 nm. In order to prepare a homogeneous mixture of WC-Co nanoparticles with an exact weight content, the procedure of deposition of cobalt on the tungsten carbide powder with the simultaneous introduction of an additive of inhibitor carbides such as carbides of chromium, vanadium, and tantalum is developed. The prepared powders were investigated using modern methods, including high-resolution scanning electron microscopy and fractional gas analysis.

Spark Plasma Sintering of high-strength ultrafine-grained tungsten carbide

The paper dwells on the research conducted into high-rate consolidation of pure tungsten carbide nanopowders using the Spark Plasma Sintering. Studies included the effect that the original size of WC nanoparticles and their preparation modes have on density, structure parameters, and mechanical properties of tungsten carbide. It has been found that materials that show abnormal grain growth during sintering have lower values of sintering activation energy as compared to materials the structure of which is more stable during high-rate heating. A qualitative model is proposed that explains this effect through the dependence of the grain boundary diffusion coefficient on the grain boundary migration rate.

High-strength ultrafine-grained tungsten-carbide-based materials obtained by spark plasma sintering

Ultrafine-grained (UFG) tungsten carbide (WC) samples with high hardness (up to 34 GPa) and increased cracking resistance have been obtained by the method of spark plasma sintering (SPS). Initial powders have been prepared by two-stage plasmachemical synthesis. The influence of the initial size of WC nanoparticles on the density, structural parameters, and mechanical properties of UFG tungsten carbide obtained by SPS has been studied. It is established that the phenomenon of accelerated sintering of WC powder is related to enhanced grain-boundary diffusion.

Preparation and investigation of ultrafine-grained tungsten carbide with high hardness and fracture toughness

High-density samples of ultrafine-grained tungsten carbide with high hardness (up to 31–34 GPa) and increased fracture toughness (up to 5.2–6.4 MPa m1/2) are obtained using the technology of electropulse plasma sintering. The influence of the initial size of nanoparticles of α-WC prepared by plasmachemical synthesis on the density, structural parameters, and mechanical properties of tungsten carbide is investigated.

Sintering of nano- and ultradispersed mechanically activated W-Ni-Fe powders and the manufacture of ultrahigh-strength heavy tungsten alloys

The structure and mechanical properties of nano- and ultradispersed mechanically activated heavy W-Ni-Fe and W-Ni-Fe-Co tungsten alloys (VNZh and VNZhK alloys, respectively) are studied. Mechanically activated nano- and ultradispersed charge powders are sintered by free sintering (thermally activated) and spark plasma sintering. The dependence of the density of the alloys made of the mechanically activated powders on the sintering temperature is found to have a nonmonotonic character with a maximum corresponding to the optimum sintering temperature. It is shown that an increase in the mechanical activation time and the acceleration of the milling bodies during mechanical activation lead to a decrease in the alloy particle size and the formation of nonequilibrium solid solutions and are accompanied by a decrease in the optimum sintering temperature of heavy tungsten alloys. Ultrahigh-strength tungsten alloys the mechanical properties of which are substantially higher than those of standard coarse-grained analogs are fabricated due to the optimization of the conditions of ball milling and high-rate spark plasma sintering of W-Ni-Fe powders.

High-speed electropulse plasma sintering of nanostructured tungsten carbide: Part 1. Experiment

The high-temperature consolidation of nanopowders of pure tungsten carbide by electropulse plasma sintering (spark plasma sintering) is investigated. The influence of the initial size of WC nanoparticles and their preparation modes on the density, structural parameters, and mechanical properties of tungsten carbide are investigated. Samples of high-density nanostructured tungsten carbide with high hardness (to 31 GPa) and crack resistance (5.2 MPa m1/2) are fabricated.