Preparation of binderless SiC_w/WC cemented carbides by spark plasma sintering

SiC whiskers (SiC_w)/WC binderless cemented carbides were prepared by spark plasma sintering (SPS), using SiC_w as the toughening phase. The effects of sintering temperature and SiC_w content on the microstructure and properties of the SiC_w/WC cemented carbides were investigated. The results show that the WC sintered body with the relative density higher than 99% can be obtained by spark plasma sintering at 1800 ℃, and the Vickers hardness and fracture toughness reach 25.99 GPa and 4.99 MPa∙m^1/2, respectively. The sintering properties and fracture toughness of the SiC_w/WC sintered body can be improved by adding the appropriate amount of SiC_w. The fracture toughness reaches 6.80 MPa∙m^1/2 with the SiC_w mass fraction of 0.6%. However, the toughening effect to the WC matrix decreases with the further increase of content SiC_w.