Study of Erosion Behavior of Al_2O_3-TiC-Co and Al_2O_3-TiC Ceramics

By a newly developed powder process, a layer of metal cobalt film was coated on the surface of fine ceramic powder of Al2O3 and TiC. The mixture of the two kinds of Co-coated powder (about 70wt%Al2O3-Co+30wt%TiC-Co) was hot-pressed into advanced Al2O3-TiC-Co(ATC) ceramic.Scanning electron microcopy (SEM) observation was employed to investigate its erosion behavior.Comparing with AT30 (70wt%Al2O3+30wt%TiC) ceramic, its high fracture toughness and fracture strength with relative fine microstructure make it more resistant than At30 ceramic against particle erosion under different impact velocity and impact angles. The SEM shows that the worn surface exhibits shallow detaching , microcrack and plastic deformation. Its proper wear resistance not only depends on its mechanical properties, but also its microstructure.