Effect of Cu-Melt Infiltration Technique and Furnace Atmosphere on Density and Microstructure Evolution of W-20Cu Sintered Compacts

Abstract

In this study, experiments were conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of environmental furnace on microstructure and hardness of W-20Cu sintered compacts. The copper melt was furnished by placing thin high purity copper sheets of 13-14mm diameter and 0.2 mm thickness under the W-20Cu green compacts. These arrangements were introduced into alumina tube furnace and sintering at 1150°C for 2h under different furnace atmospheres as protective environment. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX), were utilized to examine and characterize the microstructure, the inter boundary layer and the contamination levels of the sintering compacts. The results showed that the sintered specimens under hydrogen gas and Cu-Melt infiltration presented the best results (99.92% of theoretical density).