Physical Properties of Tungsten Carbide

Tungsten carbide, also known as cemented carbide, is one of the materials used in modern industry. Tungsten carbide productions always have properties of high hardness, wear resistance, and good transverse rupture strength. Many physical properties are affected by the amount of cobalt and carbon, grain size, and porosity.

Density

From the physical aspect, the density of tungsten carbide products is the ratio of their mass to their volume. The density can be tested with an analytical balance. The density of tungsten carbide can be affected by the mass and the volume of the tungsten carbide. That means everything that can affect the mass or the volume can also affect the density.

The amount of them can affect the density of tungsten carbide. The density of cobalt is larger than the density of carbon. So the more cobalt is in the tungsten carbide, the high density of tungsten carbide is. On the contrary, the more carbon is in the tungsten carbide, the lower density of the tungsten carbide. Porosity can also affect density. High porosity causes low density.

Hardness

To judge a material’s hardness is the same as its wear resistance. A tungsten carbide product with high hardness can endure impact and wear better, so it can work longer.

As a bonder, less cobalt causes better hardness. And lower carbon can make tungsten carbide harder. But decarbonization can make tungsten carbide easier to damage. Generally, fine tungsten carbide will increase its hardness.

Transverse rupture strength

Transverse rupture strength is the ability of tungsten carbide to resist bending. Tungsten carbide with better transverse rupture strength is more difficult to damage under impact. Fine tungsten carbide has better transverse rupture strength. And when the particles of tungsten carbide distribute evenly, the transverse is better, and the tungsten carbide is not easy to damage.

Except for these three physical properties, there is still more we should know, and they can be tested with machines. 

Quality check workers always inspect the metallographic structure under the metallurgical microscope. When excess cobalt concentrates on an area, it will form a cobalt pool.

We can know the amount of cobalt by testing the cobalt magnet with a cobalt magnetic tester. And the coercive field strength can also be tested with a coerciver.

From these physical properties, it is clear that tungsten carbide has many properties and advantages for mining, boring, cutting, and digging.

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