Book Description

The second International Conference on the Science of Hard Materials was held at Rhodes in September 1984. The delegation of 153 drew representatives from 23 countries. Of the papers presented 64 have been carefully selected and edited to give this comprehensive yet balanced survey of the advances made since the previous meeting. This compilation also looks foward and highlights areas where more research will soon be urgently needed if further progress is to be made. The scope of this meeting has increased greatly since the first which was held in 1981 by broadening the definition of 'hard' to encompass 'greater than 1000 HV' thereby covering, in addition to WC-Co based hardmetals, Ti-C based hardmetals, and a range of other systems as well as diamond and nitrides and borides of non-metals, especially boron and silicon. Moreover, more material on all the fundamental mechanisms involved has also been included. The topics reported include atomic bonding, fundamental properties, mechanical testing and characteristics, superhard materials, fundamentals of microstructure and deformation, ceramics, cermets and hardmetals, coatings and manufacture. This book is further enhanced by the inclusion of a comprehensive subject index. It is possible to gain a general overview of the factors relevant to the science of hard materials through the carefully chosen papers collected here, in addition to a detailed insight into specific areas. As such this book will be invaluable to all researchers and technologists concerned with hard metals and their characteristics.