A study of microstructures of tungsten carbide powder

X-ray diffraction profiles were obtained from eight process variants of tungsten carbide (WC) powders in both the unmilled and heavily milled conditions. From these X-ray profiles, coherent domain size and microstrain were determined. This study indicated that the degree of crystalline imperfections in the unmilled WC powder decreased with increasing reaction temperatures,i.e., the reduction and carburization temperatures. Additionally, the morphology of the WC particles was examined using SEM. The particle morphology evaluated by SEM and the degree of crystalline imperfection obtained by X-ray profile analysis are in good agreement. The behavior of the WC powder during wet milling is closely related to the perfection of the powder.