Effects of Nano-ZrO2 on the Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Ti(C,N)-Based Cermet Die Materials

In recent, the development of new die materials is one of the important topics in the field of die research. In this paper, effects of nano-ZrO2 addition on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Ti(C,N)-based cermets were studied. The newly developed Ti(C,N)-based cermet die materials with different contents of nano-ZrO2 of 0~25wt% were prepared by hot pressing technique under vacuum atmosphere at 1450°C for 30min. Moreover, the microstructure of this Ti(C,N)-based cermet die materials was observed by environmental scanning electron microscope. It indicates that the comprehensive mechanical properties can reach the optimum when the weight percent of the nano-ZrO2 is 10%. The corresponding flexural strength and fracture toughness is 967 MPa and 13.62 MPa•m1/2, respectively which is approximately 65% and 110% higher than that of the cermet without nano-ZrO2 addition. It suggests that the addition of nano-ZrO2 can improve the mechanical properties especially the fracture toughness and flexural strength of Ti(C,N)-based cermet die materials.