WC–Mo₂C–Co cemented carbides were fabricated to investigate the effects of Mo₂C addition on microstructure and mechanical properties. Dual hard-phase design using WC and Mo₂C was employed to optimize the balance between hardness and toughness. Spark plasma sintering (SPS) was conducted at various temperatures after ball milling, and 1300 °C for 5 min was identified as the optimized sintering condition, achieving complete densification and phase stability. The addition of Mo₂C refined the microstructure by suppressing abnormal WC grain growth through preferential dissolution of Mo₂C into the Co binder. Hardness increased up to 1769 Hv30 due to grain refinement and solid-solution strengthening, while promoted η-phase formation and reduced fracture toughness.The 27Mo₂C composition exhibited the most balanced combination of hardness and toughness. These results demonstrate that controlled Mo₂C addition enables dual hard-phase strengthening and microstructure optimization in WC–Mo₂C–Co carbides for advanced cutting and forming applications.
Citations
Citations to this article as recorded by
Effect of Bimodal WC Particle Size Distribution on the Mechanical Properties of WC–Mo2C–Co Cemented Carbides Jinwoo Seok, Jong Tae Kim, Juree Jung, Bin Lee, Junhee Han, Leeseung Kang Journal of Powder Materials.2026; 33(1): 13. CrossRef