Austenitic stainless steel-TiB₂ composites obtained by HP-HT method

Iwona Sulima, Paweł Figiel, Paweł Kurtyka

Quarterly No. 4, 2012 pages 245-250

DOI:

keywords: metal matrix composites, TiB₂ ceramic, HP-HT sintering

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abstract Titanium diboride has many advantages such as a high melting point, high Young’s modulus, low density, good thermal conductivity and high Vickers hardness. Therefore, the addition of TiB₂ to metal matrices has also been observed to greatly increase stiffness, hardness and wear resistance. The aim of the studies was to determine the influence of different contents of TiB₂ ceramics on selected properties of AISI 316L austenitic stainless steel. Metal matrix composites containing TiB₂ as a particulate phase were produced by high pressure-high temperature (HP-HT) sintering. Next, the apparent density (ρ_o) was measured using the hydrostatic method. The hardness was determined by the Vickers method. Young’s modulus measurements of the sintered composites were also taken using the ultrasonic method of measuring the transition speed of transverse and longitudinal waves. This paper also presents the microstructure analysis of composites with different contents of TiB2 particles. The composite was analyzed by observations with an optical microscope, scanning electron microscope (SEM) and energy dispersive spectrometry (EDS). It was shown that the properties of the composites significantly depend on the sintering conditions. Generally, the application of a larger participation of strengthening phase improves the properties of the sintered composite materials. The microstructure of the composites with different contents of TiB₂ consisted of a fine and uniform TiB₂ particle distribution along the grain boundaries.