You would like to analyse tungsten carbide in your matrices
Tungsten carbide (WC) is a chemical compound of tungsten and carbon. It is an ultra-hard, very dense refractory ceramic that combines exceptional hardness with good toughness, making it a popular material in many industrial applications.
Tungsten carbide: a strategic material
Tungsten carbide (WC) is an ultra-hard technical ceramic renowned for its wear resistance, exceptional hardness and resistance to high temperatures. Thanks to these properties, it is used as a strategic raw material in the manufacture of high-performance components, particularly in the following sectors:
- Tooling and machining (drills, inserts, dies)
- Defence (armoured parts, ammunition)
- Aerospace (parts subject to high mechanical stress)
- Mining and energy (parts subject to abrasion or corrosion)
- Advanced ceramics (technical parts with high added value)
Its performance depends directly on its chemical purity, microstructure (WC/Co phase distribution), grain size and the presence of metallic impurities or oxides. These parameters must be controlled at every stage of the value chain: production, shaping, brazing, integration in harsh environments or recycling.
What does tungsten carbide analysis involve?
The characterization or analysis of tungsten carbide involves assessing the composition, structure and physical and mechanical properties of the carbides. It is a crucial step in understanding and optimising the properties of ceramic materials used in various industrial sectors, such as aerospace, medical devices and energy. Characterising tungsten carbide involves several analysis techniques.
Tungsten carbide analysis: FILAB laboratory expertise
Why choose FILAB for tungsten carbide analysis?
The FILAB laboratory offers tungsten carbide analysis services tailored to your needs:
our services
Physico-chemical analysis of tungsten carbide
Determination of elemental impurities
Study and analysis of tungsten carbide failures
Granulometric analysis of particles
Our other carbide analysis
FAQ
Thanks to its exceptional properties, tungsten carbide is used in a multitude of demanding applications:
- Cutting and machining tools: this is its most widespread use. It is found in drills, milling cutters, turning inserts, saw blades, stamping dies, punches, etc., for machining hard materials such as steel, cast iron or composites.
- Mining and construction industry: used for drilling tools (drill bits, down-the-hole hammers), bucket teeth and tunnelling tools, thanks to its resistance to abrasion in hostile environments.
- Wear parts: Anti-wear coatings to extend the life of mechanical components subjected to abrasion, erosion or friction. These include nozzles, bushes and bearings.
- Armament: used in the manufacture of armour-piercing ammunition (shells, penetrators) because of its density and hardness.
- Agriculture: used to reinforce tillage tools, increasing their durability against abrasion.
Other applications: precision components (watchmaking, metrology), ballpoint pen balls, scribing tips, etc.
Tungsten carbide has a number of remarkable properties:
- Extreme hardness: it is one of the hardest materials known, ranking between 8.5 and 9 on the Mohs scale, close to the hardness of diamond. This hardness is maintained even at high temperatures (up to 1000°C).
- High density: its density is around twice that of steel, placing it between lead and gold.
- Wear and abrasion resistance: its high hardness gives it excellent resistance to wear, abrasion and erosion, which is essential for cutting tools and parts subject to intense friction.
- Good toughness: unlike many hard ceramics, which are very brittle, tungsten carbide has good toughness, enabling it to resist impact and fracture under mechanical stress.
- Compressive strength: it has very high compressive strength.
- High melting point: its melting point is around 2,870°C, making it stable at high temperatures.
- Corrosion resistance: it is resistant to corrosion by many acids and bases.
You will receive a clear, interpreted analysis report, including :
- Raw results with uncertainties and units
- A technical interpretation (according to your needs)
- Recommendations or hypotheses if a deviation or defect is detected
Yes, at FILAB, our added value goes beyond just giving you a figure.
We help you to understand the results, find the root causes, implement an action plan, and even support your R&D projects.
