Stainless Steel Binder for the Development of Novel
TiC– Base Steel Cermets
Akhtar Farid, Shiju Guo, Xia Yang and Yudong Lian
School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and
Technology, Beijing, 100083, China.
Abstract:
During the past decade, considerable research effort has been directed towards
the development of steel matrix reinforced cermets with a variety of binder
composition including Fe, low alloy steels, high speed steels, austenitic and
martensitic stainless steels, tool steels, duplex steels etc. Steel reinforced TiC
composites are attractive choice for wear resistance and corrosion resistance
applications. In this present study, particulate TiC reinforced 17-4PH maraging
stainless matrix composites were processed by conventional P/M. TiC- maraging
stainless steel composites with a density of >97% of theoretical density were
produced with conventional powder metallurgy (P/M). The microstructure,
mechanical and wear properties of developed composites were evaluated. The
microstructure of these composites consists of (core- rim structure) round and
semi round TiC particles. Some microcracks appeared in the composite showing
the presence of tensile stresses in the composite produced during sintering.
Typical properties, hardness and bend strength are reported for developed
composites. After heat treatment and aging, increase in hardness was observed.
The increase in hardness was attributed to the aging reaction in 17- 4PH
stainless steel. The precipitates appeared in the microstructure, which were
responsible for the increase in hardness. The specific wear behavior of the
composites strongly depends on the TiC particle content, the interparticle
spacing and the presence of hard precipitates in the binder phase.
Key Words: TiC- based Cermets, Binder phase, Maraging Stainless Steel, Aging,
and Microcracks.
Introduction:
The incorporation of ceramics reinforcements into metal matrices to
produce composite materials with improved properties has been subject of
intensive investigations during the past three decades. Ceramics metal
composites are widely used for manufacture of high performance wear parts and
cutting tools. Ideally cermets display physical properties that combine the
hardness of a ceramic phase with the toughness of a metal matrix. Most of the
work on metal matrix composites is centered on the lighter structural metals Ti, Al
and Mg primarily to attain improved strength and stiffness [1-3]. There is also a
significant interest in developing TiC reinforced Fe and steel based MMC’s
mainly to produce a combination of excellent wear resistance with improved
toughness and to achieve significant cost reductions over existing competitive
materials e.g. WC- Co cemented carbides [4-7]. Titanium carbide is considered
as a promising reinforcing material for the development of MMC’s due to its
hardness, high melting point, high chemical and thermal stability, high wear
resistance, high solvency of other carbides, good wetability and their relative