Preparation and characterization of Al2O3/TiC micro–nano-composite ceramic tool materials

An Al2O3-based composite ceramic tool material reinforced with micro-scale and nano-scale TiC particles was fabricated by a hot-pressing technology with cobalt additive in different sintering processes. The microstructure, indention cracks and phase composition of composites were characterized with scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The experimental results showed that Al2O3/TiCμ/TiCn micro–nano-composite containing 6 vol% nano-scale TiC and 35 vol% micro-scale TiC, which were sintered under a pressure of 32 MPa at a temperature of 1650 °C in vacuum for 20 min, had optimum mechanical properties. The addition of both nano-scale TiC and Co contributed to the microstructure evolution and the improvement of mechanical properties. Effects of nano-scale TiC on mechanical properties were investigated. The toughening and strengthening mechanisms of micro–nano-composites were discussed.