Claims
- 1. A composite material comprising:
a plurality of granules of a first material; and a continuous matrix formed from a second different material, wherein the granules are dispersed within the continuous matrix and comprise polycrystalline diamond and have an average granule size in the range of from 50 to 1,000 micrometers, wherein the continuous matrix comprises cemented tungsten carbide formed in situ with the polycrystalline diamond by combining tungsten carbide powder with a metal binder powder and diamond powder, and subjecting the combined powders to high-pressure and high-temperature processing.
- 2. The composite material as recited in claim 1 wherein the average granule size is in the range of from 100 to 500 micrometers.
- 3. The composite material as recited in claim 1 wherein the composite material comprises in the range of from about 30 to 80 percent by volume granules based on the total volume of the composite.
- 4. The composite material as recited in claim 1 wherein the metal binder powder is cobalt, and wherein the cemented tungsten carbide comprises less than about 30 percent by weight cobalt.
- 5. The composite material as recited in claim 1 wherein the polycrystalline diamond granules comprise up to about 30 percent by weight of a metal binder based on the total weight of the polycrystalline diamond granule.
- 6. The composite material as recited in claim 1 wherein the microstructure of granules and continuous matrix is disposed along a working surface of the composite material.
- 7. A composite material having a microstructure comprising:
a plurality of polycrystalline diamond granules; and a substantially continuous matrix of cemented tungsten carbide, wherein the granules are distributed within the matrix, the granules and the cemented tungsten carbide being formed in situ by combining diamond powder with tungsten carbide powder and a metal binder powder and sintering the combined materials, the composite material comprising in the range of from 30 to 80 percent by volume of the granules based on the total weight of the composite material, and wherein the granules have an average size of in the range of from 150 to 500 micrometers.
- 8. The composite material as recited in claim 7 wherein the plurality of polycrystalline diamond granules are formed from granulated diamond particles that include diamond powder and that are coated with a material selected from the group consisting of metals and cermets.
- 9. The composite material as recited in claim 7 wherein each polycrystalline diamond particle has a microstructure comprising a diamond cell surrounded in three dimensions by a cell boundary, the diamond cell comprising diamond grains and a metal binder, the cell boundary formed from a material selected from the group consisting of metals and cermets.
- 10. A composite material prepared by:
creating a plurality of granules by combining a first powder selected from the group consisting of diamond, cubic boron nitride, metal, and mixtures thereof, with a first polymer binder; forming a mixture of one or more second powders selected from the group consisting of carbides, nitrides, carbonitrides, borides, cobalt, nickel, iron, and mixtures thereof, and a second polymer binder; and combining the plurality of granules with the mixture and sintering the combination by high-temperature high-pressure process to provide a composite microstructure comprising the plurality of granules distributed within a substantially continuous matrix formed from the mixture of one or more powders.
- 11. The composite material as recited in claim 10 wherein the cermet matrix comprises a hard phase material and a ductile phase material, wherein the hard phase material is a carbide selected from the group consisting W, Ti, Mo, Nb, V, Hf, Ta, and Cr, and the ductile phase material is selected from the group consisting of Co, Ni, Fe, alloys thereof.
- 12. The composite material as recited in claim 10 wherein the granules are polycrystalline diamond and the cermet matrix is cemented tungsten carbide.
- 13. The composite material as recited in claim 10 wherein the composite comprises in the range of from 30 to 80 volume percent of the granules based on the total volume of the composite material.
- 14. The composite material as recited in claim 10 wherein the granules have an average granule size in the range of from about 50 to 1,000 micrometers.
- 15. The composite material as recited in claim 14 wherein the granules have an average granule size in the range of from about 100 to 500 micrometers.
- 16. The composite material as recited in claim 10 wherein the first and second polymer binders are selected from the group of materials consisting of thermoplastics, thermosets, aqueous polymers, gelation polymers, inorganic materials, and mixtures thereof.
- 17. The composite material as recited in claim 16 wherein the first and second polymer binders are different.
- 18. A method for forming a composite material comprising the steps of:
combining a powder selected from the group consisting of diamond, cubic boron nitride, metal, and mixtures thereof, with a first polymer binder to form a first mixture; forming the first mixture into a plurality of granules; combining one or more powder selected from the group consisting of cermets, carbides, nitrides, carbonitrides, borides, cobalt, iron, nickel, and mixtures thereof, with a second polymer binder to form a second mixture; combining the plurality of granules with the second mixture to form a third mixture; and sintering the third mixture to form the composite material comprising a plurality of the granules distributed within a continuous matrix of material formed from the second mixture.
- 19. The method as recited in claim 18 wherein the sintered granules are polycrystalline diamond.
- 20. The method as recited in claim 18 wherein the continuous matrix is cemented tungsten carbide.
- 21. The method as recited in claim 18 wherein the sintered composite material comprises in the range of from 30 to 70 percent by volume of the granules based on the total volume of the composite.
- 22. The method as recited in claim 18 wherein the first and second polymer binders are selected from the group of materials consisting of thermoplastics, thermosets, aqueous polymers, gelation polymers, inorganic materials, and mixtures thereof.
- 23. The method as recited in claim 22 wherein the first and second polymer binders are different.
- 24. The method as recited in claim 18 further comprising, after the step of forming a plurality of granules, coating the granules with a material selected from the group consisting of metals and cermets.
- 25. A method for forming a composite material comprising the steps of:
combining diamond powder, metal powder, and a first polymer binder to form a first mixture; forming the first mixture into a plurality of granules; combining one or more powders selected from the group consisting of tungsten carbide, cemented tungsten carbide, cobalt, iron, nickel, and mixtures thereof, with a second polymer binder to form a second mixture; combining the plurality of granules with the second mixture to form a third mixture; and consolidating the third mixture to form a composite material having a microstructure comprising a plurality of polycrystalline diamond granules distributed within a substantially continuous matrix formed from the second mixture, wherein the composite material comprises in the range of from 30 to 80 percent by volume of the polycrystalline diamond granules based on the total volume of the composite material.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a divisional application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/521,717, filed on Mar. 9, 2000.
Divisions (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
09521717 |
Mar 2000 |
US |
Child |
10235261 |
Sep 2002 |
US |