A STUDY OF MICROSTRUCTURES OF WC POWDER

X-ray diffraction profiles were obtained from eight process variants of WC powders in both the unmilled and heavily milled condition.From these X-ray profiles,coherent domain size and microstrain were determined,This study indi- cated that the degree of crystalline imperfections in the unmilled WC powder decreased with increasing reaction temperatures,i.e.the reduction and carburization temperatures,with reduction temperature being dominant.Additionally,the morphology of the WC particles was examined using SEM.The particle morphology evaluated by SEM and the degree of crystalline imperfection obtained by X-ray profiles analysis are in good agreement.The fracture characteristics of the as-recei- ved WC powder are closely related to the perfection of the powder.