Testing of Sinters Made of Copper Powders Coated with Carbon Structure Containing Graphene

Abstract

This paper presents the results of preliminary tests on specimens made from mixtures of dendritic copper powder (CuE) with the graphene-coated copper powder (CuG) in a range from 20% to 100% (CuG). The properties of the powder mixtures, green compacts and sinters were determined. To study the properties of the powder mixtures, the following tests were carried out: a measurement of the CuG powder grain size after the grinding process, measurements of the bulk density and tap density of the prepared powder mixtures. The porosity of the produced green compacts and the sinters was calculated as well as the densification capabilities of the powder mixtures by die pressing, cold isostatic pressing and sintering in a reducing atmosphere were tested. Moreover, the nature of the porosity formation was analysed using an optical microscope and the Brinell hardness was determined. The measured Brinell hardness was in the range of 17 HB for sinters made from CuG to 34 HB for sinters made from a 20% CuG powder mixture. More than six hundred measurements that were made in this study show that the high CuG content in the powder mixture reduce the hardness of the sinters as well increase their porosity.

Keywords

• mechanical engineering
• material engineering
• powder metallurgy
• sintered copper
• graphene