The effect of Ni doping on the mechanical behavior of tungsten

The effect of nickel (Ni) on activated sintering of tungsten has been known and investigated for decades. However, there are few reports on the mechanical properties of tungsten when Ni is added as a low alloying additive with less than 1 wt%. In this research, the mechanical behaviors of tungsten doped with 0.2–1.0 wt% nickel from room temperature up to 400 °C were investigated. The results show that the compression ductility of as-sintered Ni doped tungsten is drastically higher than that of as-sintered pure tungsten at all tested temperatures including room temperature, and the fracture toughness at room temperature is increased by 92%. The results suggest that the ductile-to-brittle transition temperature (DBTT) of tungsten can be reduced substantially by doping with Ni.     

Crack suppression in additively manufactured tungsten by introducing secondary-phase nanoparticles into the matrix

In this study, an effective strategy was developed to suppress cracking by introducing secondary-phase ZrC nanoparticles into a tungsten (W) matrix. Pure W and W-0.5wt%ZrC bulks were additively manufactured via the laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) technique, and their cracking behaviour was compared. It was observed that the crack density of W-ZrC was reduced by 88.7% compared with that of pure W. The grains in W-ZrC were obviously refined compared with the grains in pure W, which significantly increased the cracking resistance. In addition, ZrC diminished the oxygen impurities, further increasing the cracking resistance. This study provides a promising strategy for the additive manufacturing of high-quality W by introducing secondary-phase nanoparticles into the metal matrix.     

Effect of tungsten carbide nanoparticles on mechanical properties and sinterability of B4C-WC nanocomposites using pressureless sintering method

The effect of tungsten carbide (WC) nanoparticles on sinterability and mechanical properties of boron carbide is investigated in this study. Boron carbide, being one of the hardest materials nowadays, has a variety of applications in wear-resistant components such as cutting tools. The low strength and low fracture toughness property of this material is the drawback in its application. Production of high density boron carbide is a problem due to its covalent bonds, low plasticity, surface energy and self-diffusion ratio, high resistance to slide in the grain boundaries etc… Boron carbide samples containing 5,10,20 and 30 vol.% WC were manufactured by firstly cold press and then sintering at three elevated temperatures of 2150 °C, 2200 °C and 2250 °C. It observed that addition of WC nanoparticles results in increase in mechanical properties and density of boron carbide. The highest increase is in the 30 vol.% sample with sintering temperature of 2250 °C were the density is improved by 23%, hardness by 33%, Young's modulus by 53%, and fracture toughness by 38% compared to pure boron carbide.     

High-flux plasma exposure of ultra-fine grain tungsten

In this work, we examine the response of an ultra-fine grained (UFG) tungsten material to high-flux deuterium plasma exposure. UFG tungsten has received considerable interest as a possible plasma-facing material in magnetic confinement fusion devices, in large part because of its improved resistance to neutron damage. However, optimization of the material in this manner may lead to trade-offs in other properties. We address two aspects of the problem in this work: (a) how high-flux plasmas modify the structure of the exposed surface, and (b) how hydrogen isotopes become trapped within the material. The specific UFG tungsten considered here contains 100 nm-width Ti dispersoids (1 wt%) that limit the growth of the W grains to a median size of 960 nm. Metal impurities (Fe, Cr) as well as O were identified within the dispersoids; these species were absent from the W matrix. To simulate relevant particle bombardment conditions, we exposed specimens of the W-Ti material to low energy (100 eV), high-flux (> 10²² m^− 2 s^− 1) deuterium plasmas in the PISCES-A facility at the University of California, San Diego. To explore different temperature-dependent trapping mechanisms, we considered a range of exposure temperatures between 200 °C and 500 °C. For comparison, we also exposed reference specimens of conventional powder metallurgy warm-rolled and ITER-grade tungsten at 300 °C. Post-mortem focused ion beam profiling and atomic force microscopy of the UFG tungsten revealed no evidence of near-surface bubbles containing high pressure D₂ gas, a common surface degradation mechanism associated with plasma exposure. Thermal desorption spectrometry indicated moderately higher trapping of D in the material compared with the reference specimens, though still within the spread of values for different tungsten grades found in the literature database. For the criteria considered here, these results do not indicate any significant obstacles to the potential use of UFG tungsten as a plasma-facing material, although further experimental work is needed to assess material response to transient events and high plasma fluence.     

Impact and dynamic deformation behavior of mechanically alloyed tungsten heavy alloy

93W-5.6Ni-l.4Fe tungsten heavy alloy was fabricated by mechanical alloying process using elemental powders of tungsten, nickel and iron, followed by sintering at temperatures of 1445~1485°C under hydrogen atmosphere. The tungsten heavy alloy sintered using mechanically alloyed powders showed finer tungsten particles about 5~18 μm with high density above 99% at shorter sintering time than that fabricated by conventional liquid-phase sintering process. Charpy impact energy of mechanically alloyed tungsten heavy alloy increased with increasing the matrix volume fraction and with decreasing the W/W contiguity. The high strain rate dynamic deformation behavior of tungsten heavy alloys using torsional Kolsky bar test exhibited different fracture modes dependent on microstructure. While the brittle intergranular fracture mode was dominant when the tungsten particles were contiguously interconnected in tungsten heavy alloys solid-state sintered below 1460°C, the ductile shear fracture mode was dominant when the tungsten particles were surrounded by ductile matrix phase in tungsten heavy alloys liquid-phase sintered above 1460°C.     

ZrCp／W复合材料组织结构与室温力学性能

用XRD、SEM和TEM研究了ZrC颗粒增强钨基复合材料（ZrCp/W,ZrCp的体积分数为30％）的组织结构。由于ZrCp的加入,阻碍了钨晶粒在烧结时的长大,W向ZrC晶格扩散,在ZrC中形成（Zr,W)C固溶体,Zr也向W中发生了少量扩散,使ZrCp/W界面形成冶金结合。在复合材料中还存在很少量的W2C和ZrO2。室温下,复合材料的韧性、弹性模量和硬度都明显比纯钨高,但复合材料的抗弯强度比纯钨低。复合材料的韧化机制是裂纹偏转和细晶韧化。     

20Wf／30zRcP／W复合材料的组织结构与力学性能

采用真空热烧结法制备了致密度为98．5％的20Wf/30ZrCp/W复合材料,分析测试了复合材料的相组成、微观组织结构和力学性能。结果表明：W丝在复合材料中分布较均匀,且基本平等于热压面：W与ZrC在界面处发生互扩散,形成（Zr,W)C固深体;W丝与基体间的界面结合强度过高,并发生明显的再结晶现象;加入W丝未能起到强韧化作用。复合材料的抗弯强度和断裂韧性分别为504MPa和9．48MPa.m^1/2。     

纳米银粉体新法制备及其表征

采用均匀沉淀和高温热分解相结合的方法制备了纳米银粉体,分析了粉体形成机理,研究了pH值、烧结温度和时间对粉体粒径和形貌的影响;采用X射线衍射仪、扫描电子显微镜表征了纳米银粉体结构、组成、大小和形貌.结果表明,pH=7、烧结温度300℃、烧结2h的条件下可得到分散性好、颗粒均匀,粒径50 nm的粉体.本制备方法原料易得、成本低、设备及工艺简单,反应副产物易回收且可用作肥料,整个过程满足清洁生产的要求.     

High energy milling on tungsten powders

Nanocrystalline tungsten powders were produced by high energy mechanical milling, using both tungsten carbide (WC) and tungsten (W) balls as grinding media. X-ray diffraction study indicated that the lattice parameter of tungsten decreased (from 3.162 to 3.149 Å) with increasing milling time from 0 to 15 h. Considerable decrease in particle size was observed in both W and WC grinding media after 15 h of milling duration. Rietveld analysis of the X-ray data along the Williamson-Hall plots revealed that the crystallite size also decreased with increasing milling time. Chemical analyses showed that the total amount of cobalt and carbon in the milled samples were higher in WC grinding media, as compared to W grinding media. The sintered density increased from 80% to 98% from as received to milled tungsten powders, when sintered at 1790 °C. The mechanical properties of as sintered alloys were evaluated and were found to be strongly influenced by the milling time and grinding media.     

Fabrication of homogeneous tungsten porous matrix using spherical tungsten powders prepared by thermal plasma spheroidization process

In this work, spherical and dense tungsten particles with average size of 13 μm were synthesized by thermal plasma spheroidization process, and were further used to fabricate porous tungsten matrix with homogeneous pore distribution and open pore channel. The influences of sintering temperatures, dwelling time and additive on the microstructure and microhardness evolution of porous products were investigated, and the experimental results show that spherical and dense particles could keep their initial shape and favor the reservation of packed pores with narrow pore size distribution, which exhibits superiority in fabrication of tungsten matrix with uniform pore distribution compared with irregular tungsten powders. Specially, the porosity of porous tungsten matrix could be finely tuned from 25% to 30%, which has obvious effect on microhardness of obtained porous skeleton. The sintering kinetic analysis indicates that grain boundary diffusion is the primary mass transport mechanism during the fabricating porous tungsten matrix process. Furthermore, WCu composites fabricated by spherical powders exhibit higher thermal conductivity than that of irregular powders, which reveals the superiority of spherical tungsten powder.     

微量TiC/ZrC对TZM合金室温及高温性能与组织的影响

采用粉末冶金方法制备Mo-Ti-Zr-TiC/ZrC合金,研究微量TiC/ZrC对合金性能与组织的影响。结果表明,添加微量TiC/ZrC后合金性能得以明显提高,TiC/ZrC添加量为0.4%(质量分数,下同)时,合金室温抗拉强度分别达到最高值。同时,微量TiC/ZrC显著提高了合金的高温强度,添加的微量碳化物粒子促进了合金高温拉伸过程中韧窝的形成,使合金高温拉伸由穿晶解理和韧窝断裂的混合断裂模式向韧窝断裂转变。     

Synthesis and characteristics of 80 vol.% tungsten (W) fibre/Zr based metallic glass composite

Based on full understanding of wettability between Zr based bulk metallic glass (BMG) matrix and tungsten (W) fibre, and liquid/solid interfacial atomic interaction, the high density and high strength 80 vol.% W fibre/Zr based BMG composite, with optimum interfacial layer, was successfully developed by strictly controlling the infiltration and solidification process. Its density was 17 g/cm³. The average value of tensile fracture strength was 1685 MPa. Fracture mode represented instant rupture which was vertical to the axial direction. The average value of compressive fracture strength and strain were 2550 MPa and 23% respectively. Its fracture mode was complex splitting along loading direction. The initiation of shear bands occurred when the compressive specimen reached plastic strength. Shear bands' continuous expanding, branching, propagation and build up responded the improvement of plasticity under the continuous loading. Shear bands distributed on the fracture surface in two ways. One was consistent with the maximum shear force direction and at 45° angle with the loading direction. The other was nearly horizontal and vertical to the loading direction. The characteristics of plastic deformation and fracture were also investigated and discussed in detail.     

Ductilisation of tungsten (W): Tungsten laminated composites

Here we elucidate the mechanisms of plastic deformation and fracture of tungsten laminated composites. Our results suggest that the mechanical response of the laminates is governed by the plastic deformation of the tungsten plies. In most cases, the impact of the interlayer is of secondary importance.Severely cold-rolled ultrafine-grained tungsten foils possess exceptional properties in terms of brittle-to-ductile transition (BDT), toughness, and tensile ductility. The motivation for investigating laminated composites is to determine whether a bulk material can be made that retains the ductility of the thin tungsten foils.In this paper we analyse W-AgCu, W-Cu, W-V, and W-Pd laminates in their as-produced and annealed conditions (e.g. 10, 100 and 1000 h at 1000 °C (1273 K) in vacuum). The analyses comprise (i) the mechanical characterisation by means of three-point bending (damage tolerance), Charpy impact (BDT), and tensile tests (total elongation to fracture) as well as (ii) the in-depth analyses of the microstructure by means of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES).W-Cu laminates (60 vol% W) show 15.5% total elongation to fracture in a tensile test at room temperature. Furthermore, the BDT of tungsten laminated composites occurs at a temperature that is several hundreds of Kelvin lower than the BDT temperature of the pure tungsten bulk counterparts.Finally, we present the successful fabrication of a 1000 mm long W-Cu laminated pipe and show its high heat flux performance. Fabrication studies of high heat flux components made of tungsten laminates, in which the laminates are used either as heat spreaders or structural pipes, are presented.     

Assessment of mechanical properties of SPS-produced tungsten including effect of neutron irradiation

Production and supply of tungsten for the first wall fusion application is becoming an important aspect given the progress of ITER construction. Exploration of advanced routes alternative to the conventional powder metallurgy is currently undertaken. In this work we have assessed a potential of the spark plasma sintering (SPS) production route to deliver well controlled microstructure, chemistry and mechanical properties of bulk tungsten as a first step. SPS-produced tungsten was sintered at 2000 °C and was characterized in terms of mechanical properties, namely: tensile, three point bending and fracture toughness data in the temperaure range of 250–600 °C. Then, neutron irradiation was performed at 600 °C and the change of the fracture toughness was measured after irradiation together with the characterization of the fracture surface. The results are compared with those obtained for the commerically produced swaged tungsten irradiated and tested in equivalent conditions. The obtained results show that SPS technology offers the production of bulk tungsten with a good potential for further optimization (by e.g. swaging/rolling). Neutron irradiation causes the reduction of the fracture toughness comparable to the one induced in the commercially produced tungsten.     

Fracture toughness of polycrystalline tungsten alloys

Tungsten and tungsten alloys show the typical change in fracture behavior from brittle at low temperatures to ductile at high temperatures. In order to improve the understanding of the effect of microstructure the fracture toughness of pure tungsten, potassium doped tungsten, tungsten with 1 wt.% La₂O₃ and tungsten rhenium alloys were investigated by means of 3-point bending, double cantilever beam and compact tension specimens. All these materials show the expected increase in fracture toughness with increasing temperature. The experiments demonstrate that grain size, texture, chemical composition, grain boundary segregation and dislocation density seem to have a large effect on fracture toughness below the DBTT. These influences can be seen in the fracture behavior and morphology, where two kinds of fracture occur: on the one hand transgranular and on the other hand intergranular fracture. Therefore, techniques like electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD), Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) and X-ray line profile analysis were used to improve the understanding of the parameters influencing fracture toughness.     

Microstructure and properties of sintered tungsten heavy alloys

The microstructure and properties of liquid-phase sintered tungsten heavy alloys were studied. The structure and segregation of the impurity elements at the interfacial boundaries were examined using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and fine-probe energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) microanalysis. Test results of mechanical properties are presented and correlated with fracture behavior of the liquid-phase sintered tungsten alloys. It was found that the Fe-Ni-W alloy exhibits superior properties as compared with the Cu-Ni-W alloy. The detection of copper was found across tungsten grains and matrix that could be associated with inferior properties of the Cu-Ni-W alloy as compared to the Fe-Ni-W alloy. Although the fracture was predominantly brittle in both alloys, complex fracture modes seem to be operative due to the composite microstructure of the alloys. Evidence of microsegregation was observed that also contributed primarily to the brittle failure in the alloys. The impurity elements, such as sulfur and phosphorus, were detected at the tungsten matrix and tungsten-tungsten particle boundaries.     

Formation of ZrC ablation protective coatings on carbon material by tungsten inert gas cladding technique

Continuous, uniform, crack-free ZrC protective coatings have been deposited by a novel tungsten inert gas cladding technique on graphitic carbon substrates through the reaction of graphitic carbon with ZrO₂. The phase composition, microstructure, and ablation performance have been researched. Cross-section morphology revealed that an excellent bond was formed at the coating/substrate interface. Ablation loss tests showed samples coated by tungsten inert gas cladding technique substantially increased the ablation resistance. Compared with uncoated samples, the mass loss rate decreased by 68.5% for the coated sample with a ZrO₂:C mole ratio of 1:1.2.     

Effects of heat treatment on mechanical properties and microstructure of tungsten fiber reinforced grey cast iron matrix composites

In this study, grey cast iron matrix composites reinforced by different volume fractions of tungsten fibers (Vr=0.95 %, 1.90 %, 2.85 %, 3.80 %) were investigated in as-cast and under the heat treatment temperatures of 1,000℃ and 1,100℃. The microstructure and mechanical properties of the composites were analyzed and tested by means of SEM, micro-hardness tester and three-point bend testing. The results show that with increasing of the volume fraction of tungsten fibers, the composites reinforced by the tungsten fiber have higher flexural strength and modulus than that of cast iron without reinforcement, and the flexural strength increases with the increasing of heat treatment temperatures. Due to diffusion reaction between matrix and reinforcing phases, the process of heat treatment, the number of graphite flakes in the matrix seemingly becomes lower; and some hard carbide particles are formed around the residual tungsten fibers. Not only does the hardness of both matrix and reinforcement change tremendously, but also the region of reinforcement is also extended from the original 0.11 mm to 0.19 mm in radius.     

Thermomechanical properties of TiC particle-reinforced tungsten composites for high temperature applications

Tungsten and tungsten alloys are widely used in high temperature environments where arc ablation or mechanical deformation and damage are the main sources of materials failure. For high temperature critical applications in thermomechanical environments, however, the low strength limits the use of tungsten and tungsten alloys. Hence, new tungsten based materials with good high temperature thermomechanical properties need to be developed in order to extend the use of tungsten. TiC particle-reinforced tungsten based composites (TiC_p/W) were fabricated by hot pressing at 2000 °C, 20 MPa in a vacuum of 1.3×10⁻³ Pa. The composites were examined with respect to their thermophysical and mechanical properties at room temperature and at elevated temperature. Vickers hardness and elastic modulus increased with increasing TiC content from 0 to 40 vol.%. The highest flexural strength, 843 MPa, and the highest toughness, 10.1 MPa m^1/2, of the composites at room temperature were all obtained when 20 vol.% TiC particle were added. As the test temperature rose, the flexural strength of the TiC_p/W composites firstly increased and then decreased, except in the monolithic tungsten. The highest strength of 1155 MPa was measured at 1000 °C in the composite containing 30 vol.% TiC particles. The strengthening effect of TiC particles on the tungsten matrix is more significant at high temperatures. With the addition of TiC particles, the thermal conduction of tungsten composites was drastically decreased from 153 W m⁻¹ K⁻¹ for monolithic W to 27.9 W m⁻¹ K⁻¹ for 40 vol.% TiC_p/W composites, and the thermal expansion was also increased. The new composites are successfully used to make high temperature grips and moulds.     

Effect of tungsten content on microstructure and mechanical properties of PCBN synthesized in cBN-Ti-Al-W system

Polycrystalline cubic boron nitride (PCBN) compacts were prepared using the mixture of cubic BN and Ti-Al-W powders at 5.5 GPa and 1550 °C for 10 min. The influence of different Tungsten (W) content on composition, microstructure, porosity, mechanical property and cutting performance of the PCBN is investigated. The results show that, with the addition of tungsten, the cubic boron nitride (cBN) crystals are connected with each other by the new product phases TiB_2, TiN, Al₃Ti and W₂B under the pressure of 5.5 GPa and the temperature of 1550 °C. The rod-shaped crystals in the PCBN are expanded from the surface portion of the cBN. As the W content increases, the amount of rod-shaped crystals and the length-diameter ratios decrease in the system. When the tungsten content is 6 wt%, PCBN presents the best comprehensive performance and cutting performance, the porosity, the hardness, the flexural strength and the flank wear are 0.55%, 30.71 GPa, 972.3 MPa and 292 μm, respectively.