A new process for fabricating W–15wt.%Cu sheet by sintering, cold rolling and re-sintering

Abstract Fabrication of net-shape tungsten–copper (W–Cu) composite has attracted more attentions in recent years due to its good performance for widely applications. In this investigation, a new three-steps process was developed for improving W–Cu composite properties. Firstly, the green W–Cu sheet was sintered at 1450 °C for 2 h. Secondly, the sintered part was thinned 30% by cold rolling. Finally, the rolling part was re-sintered at 1450 °C for 2 h. The experiment results show that the composites fabricated by sintering have inhomogeneous structure due to Cu aggregation and W agglomeration. However, the composites fabricated by the new process have uniform interconnected structure because of copper distributing within the tungsten grains. Compared with the composite fabricated by the single sintering process, the composite fabricated by the new process has higher density, hardness, and coefficient of thermal conductivity (CTC), and it has lower coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) and electrical resistivity.