Cemented Carbide Tools

Guided by
Dr Vandana rao
(Metallurgy department
MSU , Baroda)

Presented by
Nisarg Dave(347)
Materials
technology
MSU

Outline

Introduction
Classification
Production
Properties
Application

Introduction
Cemented carbide consist of fine particles of carbide
cemented into a composite by a binder metal
Cemented carbide commonly use tungsten
carbide(WC), Titanium carbide(TiC) or Tantalum
carbide (TaC) as aggregate and Cobalt (Co), Nickel
etc. as a binder.

Classification
1. Single carbide
. WC/Co grade
. WC grains (1-20 micron) , 90 to 95 wt% and Co(Binder) , 5
to 10%
. The grades with binder content in the range 10 -20% by
weight and grain size between 1 and 5 micrometer have high
strength and toughness, combine with good wear resistance
. The grade with binder content in the range 3-15% and grain
size below 1 micron have high hardness and compressive
strength , combine with high wear resistance

Application

As it is suitable for materials which produce short

and discontinuous chips which do not stay over the
tool surface and does not make much temperature
hence use to machining cast iron , brass , bronze
etc..

2. Composite carbide

. Alloyed tungsten carbide

. WC(70-80%) , Co (4-8%) + a gamma phase (8-12%) of
TiC ,TaC , TiN etc
. TiC , TaC , TiN etc are more heat and diffusion resistive than
WC
. Compare to single carbide less tougher but more resistant to
crater wear
. Application : Machining steel

Production
94% W
powder

6% C

94% Ta

6%
C

Milling
(Grinding)

Carburizing to
form WC1550c

Milling
(Ball mill)

Carburizing to form TaC

2200c

Mix

94%
Ti

6% C

Milling

Carburizing to form
TiC1650c

Mix

Blending

Granulating

Compaction

Sintering

Inspection

Properties
Hardness
900VHN to more than 2000 VHN
Hardness decreases with increasing temperature due to
increasing plasticity

 Density
The wide variation in density of cemented carbide(i.e.
WC=15.7 g/cm^3,Co=8.9g/cm3,TaC=13.2g/cm3 and
TiC=4.9g/cm3)results in large variation in density with
composition
Typically the density of cemented carbide can be 50-100%
greater than that of steel. This is an imp consideration when
weight is a major factor in component design

 Thermal expansion coefficient and conductivity

WC has a very low coefficient of thermal expansion and has
high thermal conductivity
Both properties are desirable in order to control thermal stress
and to maintain high heat dissipation
This properties optimizes the resistance for carbide tools like
Carbide rotary cutter

 Corrosion resistance
Corrosion resistance of alloyed WC grade against acids and
alkalis at room temperature and at the boiling point of
corroding solution found batter than WC-Co grade

 Transverse rupture strength

TRS or bending strength testing is the simplest and common
way of determining the mechanical strength of cemented
carbide
TRS reaches the maximum at cobalt content of about 15% .

Application
Wear parts :Metal cutting, mining , mineral and civil
engineering, bearing parts for helicopters , fuel pumps and
hydraulic components in jet engines
Cemented carbide provide resistance to high temperature ,
corrosive environments, high compressive stress , fatigue and
many other harsh condition
Carbide refractory cutter
Oil and gas application , rock drillers, metal cutters.
Rolls for hot roll and cold roll

Reference
1. Todays Machining World Archive :October 2006 ,Vol. 2 ,
issue 10
2. Nptel.ac.in
3. Sandvik [Understanding cemented carbide]
4. ftp.shahroodut.ac.ir
5. www.allaboutcementedcarbide.com