The effects of microstructure on Vickers indentation damage in TiC-316L stainless steel cermets

Titanium carbide (TiC) based cermets are commonly used as wear resistance and corrosion resistance components. In the present work, the effects of microstructure of TiC-316L stainless steel cermets are assessed in terms of Vickers indentation damage, with both the steel binder content and TiC grain size varied. Binder contents from 5 to 30vol.% were examined, with samples fabricated using a simple vacuum melt-infiltration procedure at temperatures between 1475°C and 1550°C (held for up to 240minutes). Two primary Vickers indentation-cracking patterns arise in these materials, namely median or Palmqvist cracks, and this response relates to both the volume fraction of ductile metal binder present and the binder ligament dimension. Focused ion beam microscopy has been utilised for sub-surface evaluation of the cracks, to confirm the anticipated crack patterns. [Display omitted] •TiC cermets, with 316L stainless steel binder, were fabricated by melt infiltration.•Sinter conditions were varied to get fine-, intermediate- and coarse-grained cermets.•The cermets show an indentation size effect, with a higher hardness at lower load.•Fine-grained cermets show a more pronounced ISE and suffer more from cracking.•Transition from ‘median-radial’ to ‘Palmqvist’ cracks occurs with increasing binder.