Influence of processing conditions on the degradation kinetics of fused tungsten carbides in hardfacing

The application of fused tungsten carbides (FTCs) in nickel-based alloys is important in improving the wear resistance of tooling equipment in the mining industry. However, FTCs are thermally instable and dilute under excessive energy input during welding. The parameters affecting the dilution in this context are diverse and not yet completely understood. In the gas metal arc welding (GMAW) process, a method was developed to quantify the influence of the melt bead parameters on the degradation kinetics of FTCs. Based on a newly introduced degradation parameter, ZFTC, the dilution rate was found to dominate the degradation behaviour, rather than the dwell time of FTC in the melt pool.