Abrasion and Erosion of WC-Co with Controlled Microstructures

Abstract

The influence of microstructure on room-temperature abrasive and erosive wear resistance of selected WC-Co materials was examined. Cermets containing 6 and 12 w/o Co were processed under controlled conditions to produce materials with three WC grain sizes: fine—0.8 μm; medium—1.4 μm; or coarse—2.7 μm. The hardness, fracture toughness and microstructural parameters of the resulting six grades were determined. Diamond abrasive wear tests showed that the wear resistance of these WC-Co materials to abrasion depends more strongly on the WC grain size than on the cobalt content, while the wear resistance to Al₂O₃-particle gas-jet erosion shows a strong dependence on the cobalt content and less on WC pain size.

Presented at the 44th Annual Meeting in Atlanta, Georgia May 1–4, 1989

Notes

Presented at the 44th Annual Meeting in Atlanta, Georgia May 1–4, 1989