Joining Tungsten (W) to Tungsten Carbide (WC) by Spark Plasma Welding (SPW) and Examining the Effect of Temperature and Heating Rate on the Mechanical Properties of the Joint

Joining Tungsten (W) to Tungsten Carbide (WC) by Spark Plasma Welding (SPW) and Examining the Effect of Temperature and Heating Rate on the Mechanical Properties of the Joint | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Joining Tungsten (W) to Tungsten Carbide (WC) by Spark Plasma Welding (SPW) and Examining the Effect of Temperature and Heating Rate on the Mechanical Properties of the Joint Ehsan Mirsalehi, Hamed Vaez This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8240940/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract In this study, tungsten (W) was successfully joint to tungsten carbide (WC) using spark plasma welding (SPW). In this study, the effect of two key parameters, joining temperature and heating rate, was investigated on the mechanical properties of the joint. Qualitatively, reduction of the heating rate to 50°C/min resulted in the formation of a continuous and gap-free joint, while higher rates (100°C/min and 200°C/min) led to the formation of gaps and discontinuities in the joint owing to the creation of a strong temperature gradient and thermal stresses. Further, the formation of a uniform and deep penetration zone in the joint, which is essential for lowering stress concentration and increasing bond strength, was only possible at low heating rates and optimal temperatures. Quantitatively, the specimen bonded at 1250°C and a heating rate of 50°C/min attained the best mechanical properties, including a flexural strength of 665 MPa and a tensile strength of 267 MPa. Under these conditions, the hardness rose from 289 to 357 Vickers in the tungsten region and from 1910 to 2180 Vickers in the tungsten carbide region. In contrast, elevation of the temperature to 1350°C, while augmenting the density and reducing the porosity, diminished the flexural strength to 580 MPa and the tensile strength to 191 MPa due to grain growth and the formation of a brittle tungsten carbide (W₂C) phase. The specimens bonded at a high heating rate (200°C/min) also revealed a very low flexural strength of about 104 MPa owing to high porosity and weak bonding. Microstructural and phase analyses confirmed that the formation of a diffusion zone with a gradual chemical composition gradient without the formation of thick and brittle intermetallic layers is the key to achieving a strong and reliable bond between these two refractory materials. Physical sciences/Engineering Physical sciences/Materials science Diffusion bonding tungsten brittle phase W₂C tungsten carbide spark plasma welding Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Declaration of interests The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8240940","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":560270323,"identity":"c7e61213-d914-461a-a012-c4be36104bf4","order_by":0,"name":"Ehsan 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12:12:32","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":2083696,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8240940/v1_covered_8690209f-f9e3-4dc7-a3f2-aaef734a558d.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"\u003cp\u003eNo competing interests reported.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eDeclaration of interests\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.\u003c/p\u003e","formattedTitle":"Joining Tungsten (W) to Tungsten Carbide (WC) by Spark Plasma Welding (SPW) and Examining the Effect of Temperature and Heating Rate on the Mechanical Properties of the Joint","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Diffusion bonding, tungsten, brittle phase W₂C, tungsten carbide, spark plasma welding","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8240940/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-8240940/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eIn this study, tungsten (W) was successfully joint to tungsten carbide (WC) using spark plasma welding (SPW). In this study, the effect of two key parameters, joining temperature and heating rate, was investigated on the mechanical properties of the joint. Qualitatively, reduction of the heating rate to 50\u0026deg;C/min resulted in the formation of a continuous and gap-free joint, while higher rates (100\u0026deg;C/min and 200\u0026deg;C/min) led to the formation of gaps and discontinuities in the joint owing to the creation of a strong temperature gradient and thermal stresses. Further, the formation of a uniform and deep penetration zone in the joint, which is essential for lowering stress concentration and increasing bond strength, was only possible at low heating rates and optimal temperatures. Quantitatively, the specimen bonded at 1250\u0026deg;C and a heating rate of 50\u0026deg;C/min attained the best mechanical properties, including a flexural strength of 665 MPa and a tensile strength of 267 MPa. Under these conditions, the hardness rose from 289 to 357 Vickers in the tungsten region and from 1910 to 2180 Vickers in the tungsten carbide region. In contrast, elevation of the temperature to 1350\u0026deg;C, while augmenting the density and reducing the porosity, diminished the flexural strength to 580 MPa and the tensile strength to 191 MPa due to grain growth and the formation of a brittle tungsten carbide (W₂C) phase. The specimens bonded at a high heating rate (200\u0026deg;C/min) also revealed a very low flexural strength of about 104 MPa owing to high porosity and weak bonding. Microstructural and phase analyses confirmed that the formation of a diffusion zone with a gradual chemical composition gradient without the formation of thick and brittle intermetallic layers is the key to achieving a strong and reliable bond between these two refractory materials.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Joining Tungsten (W) to Tungsten Carbide (WC) by Spark Plasma Welding (SPW) and Examining the Effect of Temperature and Heating Rate on the Mechanical Properties of the Joint","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-12-17 05:36:17","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8240940/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"7f894f9d-a4f2-40c8-bf23-a2ec21126803","owner":[],"postedDate":"December 17th, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[{"id":59637443,"name":"Physical sciences/Engineering"},{"id":59637444,"name":"Physical sciences/Materials science"}],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-04-06T12:11:46+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2025-12-17 05:36:17","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-8240940","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-8240940","identity":"rs-8240940","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}