The history of the technological progress of hardmetals

• The impressive history of hardmetals is told from their invention to recent functionally graded hard materials.
• Historical and technological data on important hardmetal companies are summarized.
• Alloyed WC hardmetals as well as fine grained hardmetals and the coating of hardmetals are outlined.
• Cermets as well as ceramic and ultrahard cutting tool materials are discussed.
• A short survey of literature on hardmetals and hard materials is given.

/SynopsisThe impressive history of hardmetals starts with the Schröter Patent and is then followed by the first hardmetal company, Krupp-WIDIA. Metallwerk Plansee has also played an important part in the search of drawing dies for tungsten wires and later as one of the important hardmetal manufacturers besides Kennametal in USA, Sandvik in Sweden and others.The further development of hardmetals is characterized by other carbide and binder combinations. TiC-based hardmetals are a great step forward for the machining of steels and so are fine grained hardmetals for a wide spectrum of applications.With the rising tendency of automation in metal cutting, indexable inserts with quite complex geometries were developed for the application in lathes and milling centers working with computer numerical control (CNC).Coating technologies by chemical vapor deposition and physical vapor deposition have greatly increased the wear resistance of hardmetals. Coating with aluminum oxide multilayers and with diamond were devised as well as compact non metallic hard materials such as diamond, cubic boron nitride, oxide and nitride ceramics as well as mixed ceramics. Cermets and their special properties are discussed as well as ultrahard ceramics for special applications. Finally a short survey of the literature on hardmetals and hard materials is given.This paper is a condensed and partly updated version of a book chapter: “Introduction to Hardmetals — History of Hardmetals” by P. Ettmayer, H. Kolaska and H.M. Ortner in the book: “Comprehensive Hard Materials”, Elsevier, V.K. Sarin and D. Mari, eds. (in preparation).