Thermite welding is an exceptional process that does not require additional energy supplies, resulting in welded joints that exhibit mechanical properties and conductivity equivalent to those of the parent materials. The global adoption of thermite welding is growing across various industries. However, in Korea, limited research is being conducted on the core technology of thermite welding. Currently, domestic production of thermite powder in Korea involves recycling copper oxide (CuO). Unfortunately, controlling the particle size of waste CuO poses challenges, leading to the unwanted formation of pores and cracks during thermite welding. In this study, we investigate the influence of powder particle size on thermite welding in the production of Cu-thermite powder using waste CuO. We conduct the ball milling process for 0.5–24 h using recycled CuO. The evolution of the powder shape and size is analyzed using particle size analysis and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Furthermore, we examine the thermal reaction characteristics through differential scanning calorimetry. Additionally, the microstructures of the welded samples are observed using optical microscopy and SEM to evaluate the impact of powder particle size on weldability. Lastly, hardness measurements are performed to assess the strengths of the welded materials.

Iron and copper are practically immiscible in the equilibrium state, even though their atomic radii are similar. As non-equilibrium solid solutions, the metastable Fe-Cu alloys can be synthesized using special methods, such as rapid quenching, vapor deposition, sputtering, ion-beam mixing, and mechanical alloying. The complexity of these methods (multiple steps, low productivity, high cost, and non-eco-friendliness) is a hinderance for their industrial applications. Electrical explosion of wire (EEW) is a well-known and effective method for the synthesis of metallic and alloy nanoparticles, and fabrication using the EEW is a simple and economic process. Therefore, it can be potentially employed to circumvent this problem. In this work, we propose the synthesis of Fe-Cu nanoparticles using EEW in a suitable solution. The powder shape, size distribution, and alloying state are analyzed and discussed according to the conditions of the EEW.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by  

• Trends in bimetallic nanomaterials and methods for the removal of p-nitrophenol and its derivatives from wastewater
  M. S. Qatan, F. Arshad, M. Miskam, G. A. Naikoo
  International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology.2024; 21(5): 5247.     CrossRef
• Control of cluster coalescence during formation of bimetallic nanoparticles and nanoalloys obtained via electric explosion of two wires
  K.V. Suliz, A.Yu. Kolosov, V.S. Myasnichenko, N.I. Nepsha, N.Yu. Sdobnyakov, A.V. Pervikov
  Advanced Powder Technology.2022; 33(3): 103518.     CrossRef

Recently, the amount of heat generated in devices has been increasing due to the miniaturization and high performance of electronic devices. Cu-graphite composites are emerging as a heat sink material, but its capability is limited due to the weak interface bonding between the two materials. To overcome these problems, Cu nanoparticles were deposited on a graphite flake surface by electroless plating to increase the interfacial bonds between Cu and graphite, and then composite materials were consolidated by spark plasma sintering. The Cu content was varied from 20 wt.% to 60 wt.% to investigate the effect of the graphite fraction and microstructure on thermal conductivity of the Cu-graphite composites. The highest thermal conductivity of 692 W m⁻¹K⁻¹ was achieved for the composite with 40 wt.% Cu. The measured coefficients of thermal expansion of the composites ranged from 5.36 × 10⁻⁶ to 3.06 × 10⁻⁶ K⁻¹. We anticipate that the Cu-graphite composites have remarkable potential for heat dissipation applications in energy storage and electronics owing to their high thermal conductivity and low thermal expansion coefficient.

The aluminum (Al)/copper oxide (CuO) complex is known as the most promising material for thermite reactions, releasing a high heat and pressure through ignition or thermal heating. To improve the reaction rate and wettability for handling safety, nanosized primary particles are applied on Al/CuO composite for energetic materials in explosives or propellants. Herein, graphene oxide (GO) is adopted for the Al/CuO composites as the functional supporting materials, preventing a phase-separation between solvent and composites, leading to a significantly enhanced reactivity. The characterizations of Al/CuO decorated on GO(Al/CuO/GO) are performed through scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy mapping analysis. Moreover, the functional bridging between Al/CuO and GO is suggested by identifying the chemical bonding with GO in X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis. The reactivity of Al/CuO/GO composites is evaluated by comparing the maximum pressure and rate of the pressure increase of Al/CuO and Al/CuO/GO. The composites with a specific concentration of GO (10 wt%) demonstrate a well-dispersed mixture in hexane solution without phase separation.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by  

• Controlling Particle Size of Recycled Copper Oxide Powder for Copper Thermite Welding Characteristics
  Hansung Lee, Minsu Kim, Byungmin Ahn
  journal of Korean Powder Metallurgy Institute.2023; 30(4): 332.     CrossRef

In the present study, we develop a conductive copper/carbon nanomaterial additive and investigate the effects of the morphologies of the carbon nanomaterials on the conductivities of composites containing the additive. The conductive additive is prepared by mechanically milling copper powder with carbon nanomaterials, namely, multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) and/or few-layer graphene (FLG). During the milling process, the carbon nanomaterials are partially embedded in the surfaces of the copper powder, such that electrically conductive pathways are formed when the powder is used in an epoxy-based composite. The conductivities of the composites increase with the volume of the carbon nanomaterial. For a constant volume of carbon nanomaterial, the FLG is observed to provide more conducting pathways than the MWCNTs, although the optimum conductivity is obtained when a mixture of FLG and MWCNTs is used.

A conductive additive is prepared by dispersing multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) on Cu powder by mechanical milling and is distributed in epoxy to enhance its electrical conductivity. During milling, the MWCNTs are dispersed and partially embedded on the surface of the Cu powder to provide electrically conductive pathways within the epoxy-based composite. The degree of dispersion of the MWCNTs is controlled by varying the milling medium and the milling time. The MWCNTs are found to be more homogeneously dispersed when solvents (particularly, non-polar solvent, i.e., NMP) are used. MWCNTs gradually disperse on the surface of Cu powder because of the plastic deformation of the ductile Cu powder. However, long-time milling is found to destroy the molecular structure of MWCNTs, instead of effectively dispersing the MWCNTs more uniformly. Thus, the epoxy composite film fabricated in this study exhibits a higher electrical conductivity than 1.1 S/cm.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by  

• Effects of Morphologies of Carbon Nanomaterials on Conductivity of Composites Containing Copper/Carbon Nanomaterial Hybrid Fillers
  Yeonjoo Lee, Sung-uk Hong, Hyunjoo Choi
  Journal of Korean Powder Metallurgy Institute.2018; 25(5): 435.     CrossRef

Multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT)–copper (Cu) composites are successfully fabricated by a combination of a binder-free wet mixing and spark plasma sintering (SPS) process. The SPS is performed under various conditions to investigate optimized processing conditions for minimizing the structural defects of CNTs and densifying the MWCNT–Cu composites. The electrical conductivities of MWCNT–Cu composites are slightly increased for compositions containing up to 1 vol.% CNT and remain above the value for sintered Cu up to 2 vol.% CNT. Uniformly dispersed CNTs in the Cu matrix with clean interfaces between the treated MWCNT and Cu leading to effective electrical transfer from the treated MWCNT to the Cu is believed to be the origin of the improved electrical conductivity of the treated MWCNT–Cu composites. The results indicate the possibility of exploiting CNTs as a contributing reinforcement phase for improving the electrical conductivity and mechanical properties in the Cu matrix composites.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by  

• Proposing Machine Learning Models Suitable for Predicting Open Data Utilization
  Junyoung Jeong, Keuntae Cho
  Sustainability.2024; 16(14): 5880.     CrossRef

Cu-Fe alloys (CFAs) are much anticipated for use in electrical contacts, magnetic recorders, and sensors. The low cost of Fe has inspired the investigation of these alloys as possible replacements for high-cost Cu-Nb and Cu-Ag alloys. Here, alloys of Cu and Fe having compositions of Cu_100-xFe_x (x = 10, 30, and 50 wt.%) are prepared by gas atomization and characterized microstructurally and structurally based on composition and powder size with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Grain sizes and Fe-rich particle sizes are measured and relationships among composition, powder size, and grain size are established. Same-sized powders of different compositions yield different microstructures, as do differently sized powders of equal composition. No atomic-level alloying is observed in the CFAs under the experimental conditions.

In this study, Fe-Cu-C alloy is sintered by spark plasma sintering (SPS). The sintering conditions are 60 MPa pressure with heating rates of 30, 60 and 9°C/min to determine the influence of heating rate on the mechanical and microstructure properties of the sintered alloys. The microstructure and mechanical properties of the sintered Fe-Cu-C alloy is investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM). The temperature of shrinkage displacement is changed at 450°C with heating rates 30, 60, and 90°C/min. The temperature of the shrinkage displacement is finished at 650°C when heating rate 30°C/min, at 700°C when heating rate 60oC/min and at 800°C when heating rate 90oC/min. For the sintered alloy at heating rates of 30, 60, and 90oC/min, the apparent porosity is calculated to be 3.7%, 5.2%, and 7.7%, respectively. The hardness of the sintered alloys is investigated using Rockwell hardness measurements. The objective of this study is to investigate the densification behavior, porosity, and mechanical properties of the sintered Fe-Cu-C alloys depending on the heating rate.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by  

• Effect of Milling Time and Addition of PCA on Austenite Stability of Fe-7%Mn Alloy
  Seung-Jin Oh, In-Jin Shon, Seok-Jae Lee
  Journal of Korean Powder Metallurgy Institute.2018; 25(2): 126.     CrossRef

Copper nanoparticles attract much attention as substitutes of noble metals such as silver and can help reduce the manufacturing cost of electronic products due to their lower cost and good conductivity. In the present work, the chemical reduction is examined to optimize the synthesis of nano-sized copper particles from copper sulfate. Sodium borohydride and ascorbic acid are used as reducing and antioxidant agents, respectively. Polyethylene glycol (PEG) is used as a size-control and capping agent. An appropriate dose of PEG inhibits the abnormal growth of copper nanoparticles, maintaining chemical stability. The addition of ascorbic acid prevents the oxidation of nanoparticles during synthesis and storage. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) are used to investigate the size of the synthesized nanoparticles and the coordination between copper nanoparticles and PEG. For chemical reduction, copper nanoparticles less than 100 nm in size without oxidized layers are successfully obtained by the present method.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by  

• Correlation between electrical conductivity and antibacterial activity of chitosan-stabilized copper and silver nanoparticles
  C.Raja Mohan, Ruckmani Kandasamy, J. Kabiriyel
  Carbohydrate Polymer Technologies and Applications.2024; 7: 100503.     CrossRef
• Green Synthesis and Characterization of Natural Magnetic Particles/Chitosan Composite Material Impregnated with Copper Nanoparticles
  Defia Indah Permatasari, Bambang Rusdiarso, Nuryono Nuryono
  Solid State Phenomena.2022; 339: 19.     CrossRef
• Copper Nanoparticle(CuNP’s)Synthesis: A review of the various ways with Photocatalytic and Antibacterial Activity
  Israfil Alam Tito, Sahab Uddin, Shafiul Islam, Snahasish Bhowmik
  Oriental Journal Of Chemistry.2021; 37(5): 1030.     CrossRef

The sintering mechanisms of nanoscale copper powders have been investigated. A molecular dynamics (MD) simulation with the embedded-atom method (EAM) was employed for these simulations. The dimensional changes for initial-stage sintering such as characteristic lengths, neck growth, and neck angle were calculated to understand the densification behavior of copper nano-powders. Factors affecting sintering such as the temperature, powder size, and crystalline misalignment between adjacent powders have also been studied. These results could provide information of setting the processing cycles and material designs applicable to nano-powders. In addition, it is expected that MD simulation will be a foundation for the multi-scale modeling in sintering process.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by  

• Mesoscale modelling of polymer powder densification due to thermal sintering
  Amine Bahloul, Issam Doghri, Laurent Adam
  Applied Mathematical Modelling.2023; 114: 408.     CrossRef
• Review of “Integrated Computer-Aided Process Engineering Session in the International Symposium on Innovation in Materials Processing (ISIMP, 26–29 October 2021)”
  Hyunjoo Choi, Jungjoon Kim, Pil-Ryung Cha, Hyoung Seop Kim
  MATERIALS TRANSACTIONS.2023; 64(10): 2542.     CrossRef
• Enhancement in electrical conductivity of pastes containing submicron Ag-coated Cu filler with palmitic acid surface modification
  Eun Byeol Choi, Jong-Hyun Lee
  Applied Surface Science.2017; 415: 67.     CrossRef

A powder-in-sheath rolling (PSR) process utilizing a copper alloy tube was applied to a fabrication of a multi-walled carbon nanotube (CNT) reinforced aluminum matrix composite. A copper tube with an outer diameter of 30 mm and a wall thickness of 2 mm was used as a sheath material. A mixture of pure aluminum powders and CNTs with the volume contents of 1, 3, 5 vol% was filled in the tube by tap filling and then processed to 93.3% height reduction by a rolling mill. The relative density of the CNT/Al composite fabricated by the PSR decreased slightly with increasing of CNTs content, but showed high value more than 98%. The average hardness of the 5%CNT/Al composite increased more than 3 times, compared to that of unreinforced pure Al powder compaction. The hardness of the CNT/Al composites was some higher than that of the composites fabricated by PSR using SUS304 tube. Therefore, it is concluded that the type of tube affects largely on the mechanical properties of the CNT/Al composites in the PSR process.