Due to the renewed interest in alternative binders for cemented carbides it is important to understand how the binder composition influences not only mechanical properties but also the microstructure and related measurements for quality control. Microstructure and chemical composition of WC-Co is often evaluated by magnetic measurements. However, when the binder composition deviates significantly from conventional Co-based binders it should not be assumed that the standard measurements can be used to directly evaluate the same parameters. In this paper we investigate the influence of relative C-content on the microstructure and magnetic properties of an alternative binder cemented carbide. It is shown that the saturation magnetization is related to the relative C-content and the magnetic coercivity is related to the microstructure, more specifically to the binder phase distribution, but could not be directly linked to the carbide grain size in the same manner as for standard WC-Co. Furthermore, a direct correlation between Curie temperature and saturation magnetization is observed for this system which means that the Curie temperature potentially could be used for calibration of empirical relations or as a method to accurately determine the binder volume fraction.

The magnetic properties of 85Ni-15Fe model alloys containing Co, W and C have been studied with the intent to isolate the influence of alloy chemistry on quality control measurements of alternative binder cemented carbides. The results show a strong influence of dissolved W on the Curie temperature and the saturation magnetization. The amount of dissolved C, and the presence of WC precipitates, on the other hand, is shown to have negligible effect. Furthermore, the magnetic coercivity is indicated to be entirely dominated by the microstructural features and quite insensitive to composition.

The potential change in EU regulations may affect the traditional W-C-Co based cemented carbides industry and a methodology is required to accelerate the materials development with alternative binders. This work presents the ICME (Integrated Computational Materials Engineering) framework and the improved models that will enable tailor-made materials design of cemented carbides. The cemented carbide hardness is one of the key properties of the composites and here its close relation to the binder composition is in focus. Modeling the influence of alternative binder materials on the hardness of cemented carbides offers a way to optimize the composite properties of prospective binder candidates virtually, thereby reducing the development time and costs drastically compared to a classical trial-and-error method. The outline of a genetic algorithm is presented and the integration of the required models and tools, that are, or will become, available within this ICME framework, are presented.

Non-destructive and reliable quality control methods are a key aspect to designing, developing and manufacturing new materials for industrial applications and new technologies. The measurement of the magnetic saturation is one of such methods and it is conventionally employed in the cemented carbides industry. We present a general quantum mechanics based relation between the magnetic saturation and the components of the binder phase of cemented carbides, which can be directly employed as a quality control. To illustrate our results, we calculate the magnetic saturation of a binder phase, 85Ni15Fe binary alloy, using ab-initio methods and compare the theoretical predictions to the magnetic saturation measurements. We also analyse interface and segregation effects on the magnetic saturation by studying the electronic structure of the binder phase. The excellent agreement between calculations and measurements demonstrates the applicability of our method to any binder phase. Since the magnetic saturation is employed to ensure the quality of cemented carbides, the present method allows us to explore new materials for alternative binder phases efficiently.

The Materials Design approach offers new possibilities towards property-oriented materials development. The performance of cemented carbides is significantly influenced by properties like the hardness and fracture toughness. Fundamentally based phenomenological models, which allow for prediction of the properties of interest, make it possible to tailor the properties of the material based on the required performance. None of the previously available models are suitable to actively design the cemented carbide hardness because they are valid only for Co binders and do not allow alternative binder phases. The hardness is greatly influenced by the chemistry, binder volume fraction and carbide grain size. Only the chemistry, specifically the binder composition, leaves the possibility to optimize the binder hardness and to exceed classical WC-Co cemented carbides. Specifically focusing on the design of the binder phase, a new binder hardness description is implemented in a modified Engqvist hardness model and allows description of a wider range of conventional and alternative systems. The model was validated for various published cemented carbide systems and is able to predict their hardness within a 10% error. The assessed systems contain classical Co binders as well as alternative, austenitic binders based on Fe, Ni and Co.

The nano-hardness in the alternative 85Ni-15Fe binder phase of WC cemented carbide has been investigated. High-resolution scanning electron microscopy (SEM) imaging was used to measure the projected indentation area and a general pile-up correction, confirmed on selected indents, has been employed using atomic force microscopy (AFM). Focused ion-beam (FIB) cross-sections have been used to investigate the binder morphology below the indentations and the local binder hardness has been associated to the distance to the surrounding WC grains. Generally, decreasing distance to the WC grains leads to increased binder hardness. Furthermore, the nano-hardness for the cemented carbide binder has been corrected for the indentation size effect (ISE) to obtain the corresponding macroscopic hardness. A solid solution strengthening model for multicomponent bulk alloys was used to calculate the expected binder Vickers hardness considering the binder solubilities of W and C. Both the strengthening model and the ISE corrected hardness values, for larger binder regions, are in good agreement indicating that the intrinsic binder phase hardness is similar to that of a bulk metal alloy with similar composition.

High Entropy Alloys (HEAs) are a new group of multicomponent alloys showing great potential as bulk alloys in many fields, and their high temperature strength is especially of interest. In previous work (D. Linder, M.Sc Thesis "High Entropy Alloys - Alternative binders in cemented carbides", Linkoping University, Sweden (2015)) we have shown the possibility to produce cemented carbides with HEA-binders using standard powder metallurgical methods. The present work investigates the possibility to produce gradient sintered cemented carbides using HEA-binders. The materials are analyzed with regards to gradient depth, phases formed, phase composition and carbide grain size. The gradient formation is investigated with respect to C-content and sintering process and the results are showing the possibility to form industrially relevant gradient depths using standard methods. These results open up a whole new range of possible applications for these materials and show the potential for future design of a wide composition range of alternative binders.

Cemented carbide, also known as hard metal, is one of the most outstanding composite engineering materials since its commercial introduction in the 1920s. The unique combination of strength, hardness and toughness makes cemented carbides highly versatile materials for the most demanding engineering applications. In their simplest form, these materials are composites of tungsten carbide (WC) grains that are cemented with a ductile metallic binder phase, typically cobalt. However, despite the superiority of Co as binder material, there is a long-standing need to find alternative binders due to serious health concerns that have haunted the industry for nearly 80 years. In the present study, we develop a new cemented carbide with a high entropy alloy binder phase (CoCrFeNi) from raw materials to a fully functional, coated and gradient-sintered cutting tool insert. The new hard metal with reduced Co content is designed by using first principles theory and the CALPHAD method. The cutting tool was made by pressing the new hard metal in a standard geometry, sintered to have a thin binder phase enriched surface zone, free from cubic carbides and coated with protective layers of Ti(C,N) and Al2O3. The resulting cutting insert was tested in a real machining operation and compared to a state-of-the-art reference that had Co as binder phase. The cutting tool made of the newly developed cemented carbide has an exceptionally high resistance against plastic deformation at all tested cutting speeds in the machining test, outperforming the reference insert, which shows a linear increase in edge depression when the cutting speed is increased. This result opens up the possibility to utilize the unique properties of high entropy alloys for industrial applications, in particular, as binder phase in new cemented carbides.

Theoretically and empirically based models of materials properties are crucial tools in development of new materials; however, these models are often restricted to certain systems due to assumptions or fitting parameters. When expanding a model into alternative systems it is therefore necessary to have sufficient experimental data. When working with composite or highly confined materials, such as layered structures or coatings, this can be problematic as most available data is on bulk materials. The present work displays the potential of using Finite Element Method (FEM) simulations as a tool to understand experimental observations and expand existing models to new systems using only bulk properties of the constituent phases. The present work focuses on the effect of geometrical constraints on the indentation behavior of elasto-plastic materials as an example on how FEM may be used to better understand experimental observations in composite or layered materials. The results may also be integrated into phenomenological models, expanding their application range.

With increasing industrial interest in high alloyed multicomponent and High Entropy Alloy (HEA) systems the integration of solid solution strengthening in the ICME framework for efficient Materials Design becomes an important translator tool. A general model is proposed that performs as the framework for an extensive assessment of solid solution strengthening coefficients. The model assumes the concentration dependence of x(2/3) as proposed by Labusch but gives a non-linear composition dependence to the strengthening parameter yielding a better description for concentrated alloys. To calibrate the model, 895 alloy systems, including a wide range of elements, have been used giving a good agreement between calculated and experimental values. Additionally, a promising method is proposed to represent the temperature related softening in the investigated systems.