Preparation and anti-welding properties of dual-particle hybrid CuW composites based on binary stacking theory

Abstract

CuW composites are widely used in the fields of high-voltage switch electrical contacts and arc extinguishers due to their good arc erosion resistance. In order to improve the compactness and arc erosion resistance of CuW composites with high W content, the dual-particle hybrid CuW75 composites with different particle sizes of 1 μm, 10 μm and 20 μm were designed based on the binary stacking theory. And the hybrid CuW75 composites with different particle size mass ratios (1 μm + 20 μm) were prepared by spark plasma sintering (SPS) and infiltration method, and the anti-welding properties of the dual-particle hybrid CuW75 composites were investigated on a JF04C electric contact testing system. The results show that the density of the dual-particle hybrid CuW75 composite (1 μm + 20 μm) with a mass ratio of 1:10 is up to 99.79%, which is 3.43% and 1.13% higher than that of the single-particle CuW75 composite with 1 μm and 20 μm, respectively. In terms of arc erosion resistance, the average welding force of the hybrid CuW75 composite (1 μm + 20 μm) with a mass ratio of 1:10 has the lowest mass loss, which is 15.2% and 15.07% lower than that of the single-particle CuW75 composite with 1 μm and 20 μm, respectively. The reason is that the dual-particle hybrid CuW75 composite can disperse the arc effectively, delay the formation of arc erosion pits on the cathode surface, and reduce the degree of arc erosion on the surface of the material. Compared with the single-particle CuW75 composite with 1 μm and 20 μm, the depth of erosion pits of the dual-particle hybrid CuW75 composite (1 μm + 20 μm) is reduced by 71.4% and 80.4%, respectively.