ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Copper–nickel-based diamond cutting tools: stone cutting
evaluation
B. Henriques
1,2
&
P. Ferreira
1
&
M. Buciumeanu
3
&
M. Fredel
2
&
A. Cabral
2
&
F. S. Silva
1
&
G. Miranda
1
Received: 24 January 2017 /Accepted: 22 February 2017 /Published online: 10 March 2017
#
Springer-Verlag London 2017
Abstract The current trend to replace cobalt in diamond cut-
ting tools (DCTs) for stone cutting has motivated the study of
alternative materials for this end. The present study evaluated
the performance of several diamond-reinforced copper–nickel
composites as regard to their suitability for serving as stone
cutting materials. Cobalt (Co) and copper–nickel composites
(Cu–Ni; Cu–Ni–10Sn, Cu–Ni–15Sn, Cu–Ni–Sn–2WC, and
Cu–Ni–Sn–10WC) reinforced with 4 wt% of diamond parti-
cles were produced by hot pressing, at a temperature of 850 °C
during 15 min and under an applied pressure of 50 MPa. The
obtained specimens were characterized in terms of Vickers
hardness and shear strength. The microstructure was analyzed
by the means of SEM/EDS. A pin-on-disc wear test, with the
composite serving as pin and a stone serving as disc, was
performed in order to assess the tribological properties and
cutting performance. Cu–Ni–Sn–10WC showed to be the ma-
terial with the best cutting properties, with the highest disc/pin
wear ratio registered among the remaining competing mate-
rials. This material arises as a promising alternative to be used
in the stone cutting industry.
Keywords Diamond cutting tools
.
Cu–Ni alloys
.
Stone
cutting
.
Hot pressing
.
Powder metallurgy
1 Introduction
The diamond cutting tools (DCTs), consisting in diamond
abrasives embedded in a metallic matrix, are the materials of
choice used in the stone cutting industry and related fields [1].
A careful selection of the binding matrix must be performed,
so the optimized cutting condition for different materials could
be attended [2].
The cutting process relies on a wear progression of both the
diamond and the binding material. The wear rate of the matrix
must allow the diamond particles to be replaced when they get
blunt (e.g., loose of abrasiveness) [3]. A constant cutting rate
is thus guaranteed with the protrusion of new diamond parti-
cles when worn ones are released.
Additionally, the metallic matrix must present a chemical
and physical interaction with the diamond particles, being able
to retain them during the cutting process [1] and also preserv-
ing the diamond properties.
Two main powder metallurgy techniques have been
employed in the production of DCTs: hot pressing or cold
pressing followed by sintering in vacuum furnace [1].
Nevertheless, the hot pressing (HP) is the most used today
[4], consisting in a simultaneous application of temperature
and pressure and resulting in enhanced densification and me-
chanical properties of the products [5–9] than their counter-
parts produced by conventional sintering processes. Due to
the inherent geometric simplicity of the DCTs, it can also be
seen as a near net shape technology, avoiding complementary
shaping operations [1].
Diamond is an allotrope of carbon (FCC crystal structure)
and is the second most stable form of carbon after graphite. It
* B. Henriques
brunohenriques@dem.uminho.pt
1
Center for Micro-Electro Mechanical Systems (CMEMS), University
of Minho, Campus de Azurém, 4800-058 Guimarães, Portugal
2
Ceramic and Composite Materials Research Group (CERMAT),
Federal University of Santa Catarina (UFSC), Campus Trindade,
Florianópolis, SC, Brazil
3
Cross–Border Faculty of Humanities, Economics and Engineering,
University of Galati, Dunarea de Jos, Domneasca 47,
800008 Galati, Romania
Int J Adv Manuf Technol (2017) 92:1339–1348
DOI 10.1007/s00170-017-0220-6
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