Fabrication of Co alloy-carbide composites and 3-dimensional model using plasma powder melting method

Co alloy (KCM-1) powder, Cr₃C₂ powder, NbC powder and WC powder were directly melted by a plasma to obtain KCM-1-carbide composite materials. The maximum bending strength of composites reinforced with 20 wt% Cr₃C₂ particles was 1.18 GPa. Strength was low in comparison with 1.34 GPa of the product without reinforcement. In KCM-1-NbC composites, the maximum bending strength of the composite reinforced with 20 wt% NbC particles was 1.07 GPa. In KCM-1-WC composites, ion strength was caused by differences in density between KCM-1 and WC. With increasing carbide content, the bending modulus decreased monotonously and hardness increased monotonously.