Crater wear mechanisms of TiCN–Ni–WC cermets during dry machining

TiCN–Ni-based cermets are attractive cutting tools because of the combination of high hardness and wear resistance with improved toughness and thermal shock resistance. The present work reports the effect of WC addition (0–15 wt.%) on the machining performance of TiCN–20 wt.% Ni cermets against boiler steel. The cutting force was measured on-line using dynamometer, with respect to varying cutting speed and feed rate, in dry and orthogonal cutting conditions. The principal aim of the present investigation is to evaluate the dominant mechanisms, responsible for material removal on the rake face of cermets, using SEM–EDS. The cutting performance of TiCN–Ni cermet is observed to improve with the addition of WC content upto 10 wt.%. While, the adhesion of tribochemical layer is dominant with limited WC content, the presence of abrasive grooves and pull-outs are observed for TiCN–20Ni cermets containing higher amount of WC (>10 wt.%).     

Microstructure and electrical properties of ‘pre-sintered bismuth ruthenate-glass composite’ based thick film paste for resistor application

Thick film resistors based on a bismuth ruthenium oxide (BRO) and a leadborosilicate glass have been used to study the effect of a ‘pre-sintered glass–ceramic composite’ powder in the paste preparation on the resistor characteristics. Pre-sintered glass–ceramic composite was prepared by heating a physical admixture of leadborosilicate glass frit and BRO as functional material at various temperatures above the softening point of the glass. The microstructural changes associated with ‘pre-sintering’ step were studied using scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray analysis and X-ray diffraction, and, were correlated to the electrical characteristics of these resistors. It was observed that pre-sintering at a lower temperature of 600°C helps in restricting the agglomeration of conducting BRO particles and in generating more non-sintered contacts between them, which improves consistency in sheet resistance and hot temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR). At the same time, the pre-sintering step lowers the absolute TCR value, mostly by way of compensation of the high negative TCR of glass by the positive TCR of Pb containing ruthenate phases and/or RuO₂, which have positive TCR. It is explained that the Pb containing BRO phases are formed in situ through the Bi???Pb exchange reaction. The pre-sintering temperature of 600°C was, thus, found to be optimum for the present processing conditions.     

Abrasive erosive wear of powder steels and cermets

Composite materials produced by powder metallurgy provide solutions to many engineering applications that require materials with high abrasive wear resistance. The actual wear behaviour of a material is associated with many external factors (abrasive particle size, velocity and angularity) and intrinsic material properties of wear (hardness, toughness, Young modulus, etc.). Hardness and toughness properties of wear resistant materials are highly dependent on the content of the reinforcing phase, its size and on the mechanical properties of the constituent phase. This study is focused on the analysis of the (AEW) abrasive erosive wear (solid particle erosion) using different wear devices and abrasives. Powder materials (steels, cermets and hardmetals) were studied. Wear resistance of materials and wear mechanisms were studied and compared with those of commercial steels. Based on the results of wear studies, surface degradation mechanisms are proposed. The following parameters characterizing the materials were found necessary in materials creation and selection: hardness (preferably in scale comparable with impact), type of structure (preferably hardmetal type) and wear parameters characterizing material removal at plastic deformation.     

Fabrication and optimisation of highly efficient cermet-based spectrally selective coatings for high operating temperature

In terms of both high photo-thermal efficiency and high stability, multi-layer structures based on metal-dielectric composites (cermet) can be considered the most attractive selective solar absorbers for receiver tubes operating at medium-high temperatures in the field of solar thermodynamic plants. The double cermet layer approach represents a very simple fabrication method and can give high performances in terms of high solar absorptance and low hemispherical emittance. Optimised solar coatings based on cermet layers were fabricated in our laboratories by sputtering technique following the double layer approach. The joined employment of ellipsometric measurements and optical simulation is proposed as an effective method to optimise and fabricate coatings showing the best performances at a fixed operating temperature of the receiver tube. Interesting results concerning an optimised spectrally selective coating are shown. Solar absorptance higher than 0.94 and hemispherical emittance at 580 °C lower than 0.13 were obtained.     

Sliding wear of TiC–NiMo cermets

The friction and wear properties of TiC–NiMo/steel rubbing pairs were investigated under dry condition. The sliding wear tests were carried out on the testing device at a velocity of 2.2 m/s and a load of 40 N. The volume wear increases with increase of the sliding distance as predicted by Archard’s equation. The wear coefficient of the cermets reduces with the increase of TiC and Mo content in the composite. The study has shown that the coefficient of friction was approximately the same for all the samples. The main wear mechanism in the TiC–NiMo cermets was micro-abrasion (polishing) and adhesive wear. At the initial stages of wear, adhesive wear characteristics featured by mild scratching and plastic smearing were observed on the worn surface, but at the later stages, contact fatigue failure of a relatively thick surface layer takes place.     

Simulation of mass transport in SOFC composite electrodes

The anodes used in SOFCs are composites, formed by a mixture of nickel and YSZ particles. This paper presents a model for this type of electrode, taking mass transport effects into account. The effect of the operating conditions, such as temperature and pressure, is discussed. Also, the effect of the choice of the geometrical parameters, such as electrode thickness and particle radius, on the electrode performance is analysed in detail. In particular, the electrode losses display a minimum for a well-defined radius of the electrode particles, which is related to a trade-off between activation and concentration losses.     

New production of TiCxN1−x-based cermets by one step mechanically induced self-sustaining reaction: Powder synthesis and pressureless sintering

TiC_xN_1−x-based powdered cermets were synthesized by a one step mechanically induced self-sustaining reaction (MSR) process from mixtures of elemental powders, and subsequently sintered by a pressureless method. The composition and microstructure of the ceramic and binder phases before and after the sintering process were studied by X-ray diffraction, scanning and transmission electron microscopy, and electron diffraction. The powdered cermets showed excellent binder dispersion and a nanometer character for the ceramic and binder particles. The TiC_xN_1−x stoichiometry was consistently richer in carbon than expected from the raw powder composition. An important amount of titanium was present in the binder after MSR synthesis, and intermetallic Ti–Ni or Ti–Co phases were obtained in some cases. After sintering, the binder phase was always constituted by intermetallic compounds. The morphology of the ceramic phase in the final bodies was dependent on the C/N ratio of TiC_xN_1−x and its growth primarily occurred through a coalescence process. The presence of titanium in the binder reduced hard particle solubility in the melted binder and its grain growth.     

Near-net shape manufacture of B4C–Co and ZrC–Co composites by slip casting and pressureless sintering

Fabrication of near-net shaped B₄C–Co and ZrC–Co composites by slip casting and pressureless sintering is described. It is shown how B₄C–Co and ZrC–Co concentrated suspensions can be prepared by aqueous colloidal processing, and optimized (in terms of pH, deflocculant contents, and sonication time) to have a shear-thinning rheological behaviour suitable for the near-net shaping of the corresponding cermet compacts by slip casting. It is also demonstrated that the robust, highly-dense compacts so obtained have a uniform green microstructure without macro-defects or gradient density, and which can be fully densified by pressureless sintering. Specifically, it is shown that B₄C–Co compacts densify by reactive and transient liquid-phase sintering, thus resulting in multi-component ceramics. ZrC–Co compacts densify however by persistent liquid-phase sintering, thus resulting in cermets. An explanation is given for these observations, and general implications are discussed for the near-net shape manufacture of these and similar carbide-metal composites for use in engineering applications.     

High temperature erosion of Cr3C2-NiCr thermal spray coatings — The role of phase microstructure

Cr₃C₂-NiCr thermal spray coatings are extensively applied to mitigate erosion at temperatures above 450-550 °C. The aim of this work was to extend the current comparison based knowledge towards a mechanistic interpretation of the high temperature erosion of Cr₃C₂ based thermal spray coatings. Coatings that span the range of industrial quality were assessed. They were eroded under high temperature (700 °C and 800 °C), aggressive (impact velocity 225-235 m/s) conditions designed to simulate the high velocity erodent impacts within a turbine environment. The influence on the erosion response of high temperature induced changes in the coating microstructure and composition with extended in-service exposure was assessed by heat treating selected samples to generate a steady state microstructure prior to testing. In spite of the marked variation in coating microstructure the erosion rates were comparable across the range of coatings tested. The significance of this conclusion is discussed in terms of the erosion mechanism.     

Wear-resistant ceramic and metal–ceramic ultrafine composites fabricated from combustion synthesised metastable powders

Dense Ti–Al₂O₃–TiC cermet and TiC–TiB₂ ceramic composites have been fabricated by high-pressure high-temperature (HPHT) sintering starting from metastable nanostructured powders obtained by means of a technique based on the self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (SHS) process. The microstructural observations showed that an ultrafine microstructure was retained in the sintered composites thanks to the limited grain growth allowed by the short sintering duration of the HPHT method. The sintered TiC–TiB₂ and Ti–Al₂O₃–TiC fine-grained bulk composites exhibited high values of hardness and Young modulus. The tribological characterization confirmed the good properties of both the materials in terms of wear-resistance and makes them very promising candidates for demanding applications. The influence of the ultrafine grain size on physical and tribological properties of the densified materials is discussed.