| Summary: | Ceramic material has been popularly used in the industry for the different sector over a century. This is because of its productivity and efficiency in many applications including machine tools and cutting tool material. The ceramic cutting tools have high demand from the market due to its efficiency and wear resistance. However, ceramics itself inherit the brittleness in its mechanical properties. In order to build the high strength of ceramic cutting tools, there needs to choose the suitable reinforcement to improve its toughness. In this case, copper and zirconia materials were added to investigate the mechanical and physical properties. Besides, the composition of the powder between alumina matrix, zirconia and copper has to be precise in order to produce high strength ceramic insert cutting tools. Several methods were used in the manufacturing of insert and one of them is pre-forming process of mix powder parts prior to densification by sintering. In this experiment, uniaxial pressing method was also used to form a green compact of the insert and it was found with uniform density and good structural integrity. Solid state sintering was used in in the solidification process using Naberthem furnace. The effect of the composition of the reinforcement on the shrinkage, hardness, density and microstructure of the inserts was also investigated. In this project an optimum density of 3.26% and hardness 1385HV was obtained for a composition of 80% by weight alumina, 10% by weight zirconia and 10% by weight copper.
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