Effects of copper infiltrant amount and infiltration method on mechanical properties of sintered steel

Abstract

In this paper, the effects of copper infiltrant amount and copper infiltration method on the mechanical properties of Fe-Cu-C-based sintered steel were investigated. The results indicate that the density, tensile strength, impact energy, and hardness of the sintered steel increase with higher copper infiltration. The optimal mechanical properties were achieved when the copper infiltrant amount reached 15%, resulting in a surface hardness of HRC31, an impact energy of 31.34 J, and an ultimate tensile strength of 759 MPa. Furthermore, different copper infiltration methods affected the material’s mechanical properties. When the copper infiltrant amount was 12.5%, the impact energy of the sintered steel sample was 15.41% higher using the bottom copper infiltration process (30.19 J) compared to the top copper infiltration process (26.16 J). These findings provide valuable insights for enhancing the mechanical properties of iron-based powder metallurgy sintered steel with copper infiltration.