A comparative study of cemented carbide parts produced by solvent on granules 3D-printing (SG-3DP) versus press and sinter

Abstract Cemented carbide parts have been manufactured from WC-12Co granules by “Solvent on Granules 3D-Printing” and compared with reference parts produced by conventional press and sintering. SG-3DP consists in growing a green part layer-by-layer by selective solvent jetting on powder-polymer granule beds. Both 3D printed green parts and uniaxially pressed compacts have been consolidated by thermal debinding and liquid phase sintering. Further densification has been achieved by hot isostatic pressing. 3D-printed parts subjected to hot isostatic pressing exhibit 99.9% of theoretical density, 1308 ± 10 HV30 hardness and 12.1 ± 0.3 MPa∙m½ indentation toughness, which are comparable to properties of a commercial fine grained WC-12Co. Percussion drilling tests with fully dense SG-3DP drill plates have also been carried out successfully on concrete.