CoNiFeCr high entropy alloy (HEA) was used as a binder in cemented carbides for developing a new high-performance binder. The microstructure of WC-HEA cemented carbides with different binder components and carbon contents was subsequently studied. It was observed that the (Cr,W)C phase precipitated at the WC/HEA interface, and a coherent interface with a low degree of misfit was formed between WC and (Cr,W)C, thereby resulting in a significant reduction in the interfacial energy and stress concentration. The (Cr,W)C phase exerted a pinning force (Zener-drag) on the moving grain boundaries, which effectively inhibited the growth of WC grains. As a result, compared with WC-Co, WC-CoNiFeCr had smaller WC grain size, smoother grain shape and larger mean free path (MFP) of the binder, which resulted in slightly lower hardness and higher transverse rupture strength (TRS) and fracture toughness. The lower limit of carbon content in WC-CoNiFeCr was higher than that of WC-Co. With the addition of Ni, the width of the two-phase region became wider, whereas the width of the two-phase region became narrower with the addition of Fe and Cr.

In this study, we developed composite Fe-Cr-V-C coatings by plasma transferred-arc (PTA) powder surfacing on a 42CrMo steel substrate. The effects of arc current and ion gas flow rate on the coatings’ microstructure, hardness, and bonding performance were investigated. During the surfacing process, ${\mathrm{V}}_{\mathrm{x}}{\mathrm{C}}_{\mathrm{y}},{{\mathrm{M}}_7\mathrm{C}}_3\left(\mathrm{M}=\mathrm{F}\mathrm{e},\mathrm{C}\mathrm{r}\right)$ and other hard phases are in-situ generated throughout the entire PTA powder surfacing. These phases are uniformly distributed in the Fe matrix through precipitation and dispersion strengthening, yielding a surface hardness of up to 64.1 HRC. Also, the bonding performance between the substrate and coatings was evaluated by measuring the tensile strength, revealing that strong metallurgical bonds are formed, reaching a strength greater than 811 MPa.

In this study, Ti-30Mo-nTiC (0, 0.5 wt.%) and Ti-30Mo-0.5TiC-xZr (0, 4, 8, 12 wt.%) alloys were prepared using the powder metallurgy process with the addition of Zr at different rates. The effect of TiC and Zr additions on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the Ti-30Mo alloys were investigated, respectively. The results demonstrated that the addition of 0.5 wt.% TiC significantly improved the density, tensile strength and elastic modulus. The ultimate tensile strength, elongation and elastic modulus of the Ti-30Mo-0.5TiC alloy were determined to be 825 MPa, 7.3% and 112 GPa, respectively. For Ti-30Mo-0.5TiC-xZr alloys, the addition of Zr (8 wt.% or less) results in alloys having a high relative density (>98%), with the density of the alloy decreasing significantly when the Zr content is 12 wt.%. As the Zr content increases, the β phase lattice constant also increases along with the amount of carbide aggregation. This leads to a decrease in the alloy strength, with an increase in the alloy hardness. During high temperature tensile testing at 600 °C, the Ti-30Mo-0.5TiC alloy still had suitable mechanical properties, with its ultimate tensile strength and elongation being 472 MPa and 12.8%, respectively.