INFLUENCE OF THE METAL CERAMIC INTERFACE ON THE MICROSTRUCTURES AND MECHANICAL-PROPERTIES OF HIPED IRON-BASED COMPOSITES/

Iron-based composites are an important class of wear- and corrosion-re sistant materials for the chemical and process industries. The influen ce of the metal/ceramic interface on the microstructure and mechanical properties of iron-based composites with a high-chromium white iron m atrix has been investigated. Three ceramic particle reinforcements (Al 2O3, TiC, Cr3C2) with different chemical behaviour in contact with iro n alloys were selected in order to reveal the influence of the resulti ng different interfaces on the microstructure and mechanical propertie s of the composites. It was found that the interface of the metal/cera mic system affects the amount of martensitic transformation in the iro n-alloy matrix. Regarding the mechanical properties, wear resistance a nd hardness were not dependent on the nature of the interface; however , toughness deteriorated to a great extent with a weak interface. (C) 1996 Published by Elsevier Science Limited