Diamond Ground Products is an expert in the field of fabricating and machining tungsten-copper. With their state-of-the-art equipment and experienced staff, DGP offers unmatched quality and capability at the lowest prices. DGP provides precise and consistent parts from low volume prototype to high-volume production and from the simplest rods to complex fabrications with the strictest tolerances.
Tungsten-Copper is a high-performance material for the manufacture of parts, and is characterized by:
High thermal conductivity
Low thermal expansion
High wear resistance
Excellent electrical conductivity
Common Tungsten Copper Applications include:
Resistance welding
Heat sinks
Electrical discharge machining
Electro-chemical machining
Electrical contacts
Contact Diamond Ground Products to see which material is right for your application and to get your FREE quote today.
2013年9月12日星期四
Why Copper Tungsten?
If you've been reading the past few posts on the use of Copper Tungsten for Electrical Discharge Machining (EDM) electrodes, you know by now that the success of the process is largely influenced by both workpiece and electrode material properties.
Accordingly, choosing an electrode material ultimately depends on its ability to interact productively with your workpiece material, as well as on your particular production goal (e.g., cost savings? surface finish? improved wear resistance?).
There are several common metrics for measuring the success of your EDM production job:
EWR (electrode wear ratio),
MRR (material removal rate) and
Ra (surface finish).
So far we've discussed how copper tungsten can improve EWR both because of its innate structural integrity as derived from both Copper and Tungsten, and because of its resistance to DC Arcing--a common EDM related frustration.
This post is all about Material Removal Rates. MRR, or cutting speed, is largely dependent on the interaction between material properties and machining parameters.
Material Properties of Copper Tungsten
Copper with its excellent thermal conductivity, is the portion of the CuW composition that drives cutting speed. This begs the question: "Why not use a pure Copper electrode then?" The answer is that Electrolytic (pure) copper poses enormous challenges in manufacturability and wear rates. But, as you may have guessed, alloying it with Tungsten improves both conditions dramatically producing a better overall performance.
Interestingly, the addition of Tungsten to Copper often generates a recast layer, commonly referred to as "black layer," during the EDM process which can actually improve wear resistance. However the additional build up slightly lowers thermal conductivity and ultimately reduces the MRR.
EDM Process Parameters to Improve MRR
Because EDM is a thermal process one would logically infer that increasing thermal conductivity will increase MRR. But material removal rate is only one of three interdependent variables listed above. In reality, it's a bit more of a "Goldilocks" problem; there is a "just-right" solution where conductivity is high enough to improve cutting rates, but not so high as to leave the spark gap empty of heat. The material lends itself to a kind of process parameter sweet spot that can produce on spec parts, incredibly efficiently. And luckily, there are many really smart people who have developed empirical models for determining process parameters, as they relate to material properties.
And more crucially, studies have shown that thermal conductivity, alone, does not influence MRR, but the combination of copper tungsten's thermal conductivity and peak current does--the direct correlation being a stronger, more impactful spark makes for fast (albeit not pretty) material removal. (Note: Just increasing peak current without also increasing conductivity, compromises surface finish because of the more explosive, uneven burn.) More specifically, the influence of thermal conductivity is realized only in conjunction with peak current.
To find out more about Copper Tungsten and why you might choose for your EDM related applications, download our free white paper!
Accordingly, choosing an electrode material ultimately depends on its ability to interact productively with your workpiece material, as well as on your particular production goal (e.g., cost savings? surface finish? improved wear resistance?).
There are several common metrics for measuring the success of your EDM production job:
EWR (electrode wear ratio),
MRR (material removal rate) and
Ra (surface finish).
So far we've discussed how copper tungsten can improve EWR both because of its innate structural integrity as derived from both Copper and Tungsten, and because of its resistance to DC Arcing--a common EDM related frustration.
This post is all about Material Removal Rates. MRR, or cutting speed, is largely dependent on the interaction between material properties and machining parameters.
Material Properties of Copper Tungsten
Copper with its excellent thermal conductivity, is the portion of the CuW composition that drives cutting speed. This begs the question: "Why not use a pure Copper electrode then?" The answer is that Electrolytic (pure) copper poses enormous challenges in manufacturability and wear rates. But, as you may have guessed, alloying it with Tungsten improves both conditions dramatically producing a better overall performance.
Interestingly, the addition of Tungsten to Copper often generates a recast layer, commonly referred to as "black layer," during the EDM process which can actually improve wear resistance. However the additional build up slightly lowers thermal conductivity and ultimately reduces the MRR.
EDM Process Parameters to Improve MRR
Because EDM is a thermal process one would logically infer that increasing thermal conductivity will increase MRR. But material removal rate is only one of three interdependent variables listed above. In reality, it's a bit more of a "Goldilocks" problem; there is a "just-right" solution where conductivity is high enough to improve cutting rates, but not so high as to leave the spark gap empty of heat. The material lends itself to a kind of process parameter sweet spot that can produce on spec parts, incredibly efficiently. And luckily, there are many really smart people who have developed empirical models for determining process parameters, as they relate to material properties.
And more crucially, studies have shown that thermal conductivity, alone, does not influence MRR, but the combination of copper tungsten's thermal conductivity and peak current does--the direct correlation being a stronger, more impactful spark makes for fast (albeit not pretty) material removal. (Note: Just increasing peak current without also increasing conductivity, compromises surface finish because of the more explosive, uneven burn.) More specifically, the influence of thermal conductivity is realized only in conjunction with peak current.
To find out more about Copper Tungsten and why you might choose for your EDM related applications, download our free white paper!
Tungsten Copper Alloy
Tungsten Copper is one of numerous metal alloys sold by American Elements under the tradename AE Alloys?. Generally immediately available in most volumes, AE Alloys? are available as bar, Ingot, ribbon, wire, shot, sheet, and foil. Ultra high purity and high purity forms also include metal powder, submicron powder and nanoscale, targets for thin film deposition, and pellets for chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and physical vapor deposition (PVD) applications. American Elements produces to many standard grades when applicable, including Mil Spec (military grade); ACS, Reagent and Technical Grade; Food, Agricultural and Pharmaceutical Grade; Optical Grade, USP and EP/BP (European Pharmacopoeia/British Pharmacopoeia) and follows applicable ASTM testing standards. Typical and custom packaging is available. Primary applications include bearing assembly, ballast, casting, step soldering, and radiation shielding.
Tungsten (W) and molecular weight, atomic number and elemental symbolTungsten (atomic symbol: W, atomic number: 74) is a Block D, Group 6, Period 6 element with an atomic weight of 183.84. The number of electrons in each of tungsten's shells is [2, 8, 18, 32, 12, 2] and its electron configuration is [Xe] 4f14 5d4 6s2. Tungsten Bohr Model The tungsten atom has a radius of 139 pm and a Van der Waals radius of 210 pm. Tungsten was discovered by Torbern Bergman in 1781 and first isolated by Juan José Elhuyar and Fausto Elhuyar in 1783. In its elemental form, tungsten has a grayish white, lustrous appearance.Elemental Tungsten Tungsten has the highest melting point of all the metallic elements and a density comparable to that or uranium or gold and about 1.7 times that of lead. Tungsten alloys are often used to make filaments and targets of x-ray tubes. It is found in the minerals scheelite (CaWO4) and wolframite [(Fe,Mn)WO4]. In reference to its density, Tungsten gets its name from the Swedish words "tung" and "sten," meaning heavy stone. For more information on tungsten, including properties, safety data, research, and American Elements' catalog of tungsten products, visit the Tungsten Information Center.
Copper Bohr ModelCopper (Cu) atomic and molecular weight, atomic number and elemental symbolCopper (atomic symbol: Cu, atomic number: 29) is a Block D, Group 11, Period 4 element with an atomic weight of 63.546. The number of electrons in each of copper's shells is 2, 8, 18, 1 and its electron configuration is [Ar] 3d10 4s1. The copper atom has a radius of 128 pm and a Van der Waals radius of 186 pm. Copper was first discovered by Early Man prior to 9000 BC.In its elemental form, copper has a red-orange metallic luster appearance. Elemental Copper Of all pure metals, only silver has a higher electrical conductivity.The origin of the word copper comes from the Latin word 'cuprium' which translates as "metal of Cyprus." Cyprus, a Mediterranean island, was known as an ancient source of mined copper. For more information on copper, including properties, safety data, research, and American Elements' catalog of copper products, visit the Copper Information Center.
Tungsten (W) and molecular weight, atomic number and elemental symbolTungsten (atomic symbol: W, atomic number: 74) is a Block D, Group 6, Period 6 element with an atomic weight of 183.84. The number of electrons in each of tungsten's shells is [2, 8, 18, 32, 12, 2] and its electron configuration is [Xe] 4f14 5d4 6s2. Tungsten Bohr Model The tungsten atom has a radius of 139 pm and a Van der Waals radius of 210 pm. Tungsten was discovered by Torbern Bergman in 1781 and first isolated by Juan José Elhuyar and Fausto Elhuyar in 1783. In its elemental form, tungsten has a grayish white, lustrous appearance.Elemental Tungsten Tungsten has the highest melting point of all the metallic elements and a density comparable to that or uranium or gold and about 1.7 times that of lead. Tungsten alloys are often used to make filaments and targets of x-ray tubes. It is found in the minerals scheelite (CaWO4) and wolframite [(Fe,Mn)WO4]. In reference to its density, Tungsten gets its name from the Swedish words "tung" and "sten," meaning heavy stone. For more information on tungsten, including properties, safety data, research, and American Elements' catalog of tungsten products, visit the Tungsten Information Center.
Copper Bohr ModelCopper (Cu) atomic and molecular weight, atomic number and elemental symbolCopper (atomic symbol: Cu, atomic number: 29) is a Block D, Group 11, Period 4 element with an atomic weight of 63.546. The number of electrons in each of copper's shells is 2, 8, 18, 1 and its electron configuration is [Ar] 3d10 4s1. The copper atom has a radius of 128 pm and a Van der Waals radius of 186 pm. Copper was first discovered by Early Man prior to 9000 BC.In its elemental form, copper has a red-orange metallic luster appearance. Elemental Copper Of all pure metals, only silver has a higher electrical conductivity.The origin of the word copper comes from the Latin word 'cuprium' which translates as "metal of Cyprus." Cyprus, a Mediterranean island, was known as an ancient source of mined copper. For more information on copper, including properties, safety data, research, and American Elements' catalog of copper products, visit the Copper Information Center.
订阅：
博文 (Atom)