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Effect of the microstructure and properties of graphite/copper composites fabricated by microwave sintering

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Abstract

In this study, graphite/copper composites were prepared by microwave sintering. The microstructure and properties of the composites were characterized. The effects of different sintering temperatures on the properties of the composites were studied, and the differences between microwave sintering and conventional sintering composites were compared. The results show that after microwave sintering, the grain size of the copper matrix is refined and the graphite/copper interface is improved, and the distribution of graphite over the matrix becomes more uniform. Compared with conventional sintering, the properties of microwave-sintered samples have been further improved. Besides, with the increase in sintering temperature, the density, hardness, electrical conductivity and thermal conductivity of the composite have been improved, and some properties have become anisotropic obviously. Thus, the electrical conductivity and thermal conductivity along the direction of graphite sheet are higher than those perpendicular to the sheet.

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The raw data and processed data required to reproduce these findings cannot be shared at this time due to legal or ethical reasons.

The raw data and processed data required to reproduce these findings cannot be shared at this time as the data also form part of an ongoing study.

Abbreviations

CS:

Conventional sintering

MS:

Microwave sintering

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Acknowledgements

This work was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 51864030), National Key R&D Program of China (No. 2018YFC1901904), Yunnan Provincial Science and Technology Talents Program (No. 2019HB003), Yunnan Science and Technology Major Project (Grant Nos. 2019ZE001 and 2018ZE027), Yunnan Provincial youth Top-notch Talent Support Program, and Scientific Research Fund of Kunming University of Science and Technology (Grant Nos. KKZ3201752046 and KKSY201732033).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Metallurgical and Energy Engineering, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, 650093, People’s Republic of China

    Zemin Wang, Lei Xu, Jinhui Peng, Zhimeng Tang, Zhaohui Han & Jianhua Liu

  2. National Local Joint Laboratory of Engineering Application of Microwave Energy and Equipment Technology, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, 650093, People’s Republic of China

    Zemin Wang, Lei Xu, Jinhui Peng, Zhimeng Tang, Zhaohui Han & Jianhua Liu

  3. State Key Laboratory of Complex Nonferrous Metal Resources Clean Utilization, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, 650093, People’s Republic of China

    Zemin Wang & Zhimeng Tang

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  1. Zemin Wang
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  2. Lei Xu
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Correspondence to Lei Xu.

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Wang, Z., Xu, L., Peng, J. et al. Effect of the microstructure and properties of graphite/copper composites fabricated by microwave sintering. J Mater Sci 56, 9183–9195 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-021-05891-5

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