Tungsten metal

Tungsten metal pellets are pellet-shaped tungsten materials with high melting point, high hardness, high density, etc. They play a key role in industrial manufacturing, military equipment, radiation protection, counterweight systems and many other fields.

Characteristics

Appearance: Usually presents a greyish-white shiny metallic colour with a metallic luster.

Density: Very high density, about 19.25 g/cm3 or 19.3 g/cm3, is a high density metal, which gives tungsten metal particles a unique advantage in applications where high density materials are required, e.g., as counterweights, radiation shielding materials, etc.

Hardness: The high hardness of tungsten metal particles, which is among the harder of the pure metals, gives them good resistance to wear and deformation, but also makes them relatively difficult to machine and forge in the pure state.

Melting point: The melting point is as high as about 3410℃, which is one of the highest melting points among all metals. It has good high temperature resistance and can maintain stable physical and chemical properties under high temperature environment, so it is commonly used in high temperature structural parts and heating elements.

Coefficient of Thermal Expansion: The coefficient of thermal expansion is relatively small, about 4.5×10-⁶/K, which means that tungsten metal particles have small dimensional changes when the temperature changes, which is very important for applications that require dimensional stability under temperature changing environments.

Chemical stability: at room temperature, tungsten metal particles are chemically stable and not easy to react with common substances such as oxygen and water, but at high temperature or under specific chemical environment, they may react with some oxidants to generate tungsten oxides.

Antioxidant property: It has good antioxidant property and can resist oxidation corrosion under high temperature, which makes tungsten metal particles can keep good performance and service life in high temperature working environment.

Resistivity: the resistivity is relatively high, about 5.65 micro ohm・cm (at 27℃), which makes tungsten metal particles can be used as resistive or electrode materials under certain conditions.

Electron Emission Properties: It has good electron emission properties, so it is widely used in electronic equipment and processes such as electron tubes, cathode ray tubes, and electron beam welding.

Particle size distribution: The particle size of tungsten metal particles can be produced and processed according to different application requirements, and the particle size distribution will affect its performance in application, for example, in powder metallurgy, the particle size distribution will affect the moulding and sintering performance of the material.

Purity: Generally speaking, high purity tungsten particles (purity can reach 99.95% and above) have better performance and higher application value, the presence of impurities may affect its physical, chemical and electrical properties.

Applications

Machining:

Cutting tools: tungsten metal particles can be used to make carbide cutting tools, such as milling cutters, drills, turning tools and so on. The high hardness and high temperature resistance of tungsten enable it to maintain a sharp cutting edge during high-speed cutting, effectively cutting a variety of metal materials, including alloy steel, stainless steel and titanium alloy with high hardness. For example, in the machining of aerospace parts, which requires the use of high-precision, high-hardness cutting tools, tungsten carbide cutting tools play an important role.

Mould manufacturing: It is used to manufacture stamping moulds, injection moulds and so on. Moulds need to withstand greater pressure and friction in the working process, and the high hardness and wear resistance of tungsten metal particles can ensure the service life and moulding precision of moulds. For example, in automobile manufacturing, a large number of parts need to be shaped through stamping moulds, and tungsten metal particles reinforced moulds can meet the demand for high-intensity production.

Electronic industry field:

Electrode materials: In devices such as electron tubes, cathode ray tubes and plasma displays, tungsten metal particles can be used as electrode materials. Tungsten has good conductivity and high-temperature stability, and can work stably under the environment of high voltage and high temperature to ensure the normal operation of electronic equipment. For example, in some high-power electronic tubes, tungsten electrodes can withstand high current and high temperature.

Semiconductor manufacturing: Tungsten metal particles can be used as sputtering targets in the semiconductor manufacturing process. Through the sputtering process, tungsten is deposited on semiconductor chips to form, for example, a conductive or barrier layer. The high purity and good sputtering properties of tungsten ensure the manufacturing quality of semiconductor chips.

Aerospace field:

High-temperature components: High-temperature components such as combustion chambers and turbine blades of aerospace engines require high-temperature resistant materials. Tungsten has a high melting point and good high-temperature resistance, and tungsten metal particles can be used to make coatings or reinforcing materials for these high-temperature parts to improve the high-temperature resistance and service life of the parts. For example, in the nozzle part of a rocket engine, the use of tungsten-based materials can withstand the washout of high-temperature gas.

Counterweight materials: Due to tungsten’s high density, tungsten metal particles can be used to make counterweight components for aerospace vehicles. In the design of aircraft, counterweights are needed to adjust the centre of gravity and ensure the stability of the aircraft. The high density of tungsten particles can provide a large weight in a small volume to meet the needs of counterweights.

Medical field:

Radiotherapy: tungsten metal particles can be used to manufacture carriers for radioactive particle implantation therapy. The radioactive particles are encapsulated in tungsten metal particles and then implanted into the tumour tissue to kill the cancer cells through the radiation effect of the radioactive particles. The high density and good biocompatibility of tungsten can ensure accurate implantation of radioactive particles and therapeutic effect.

Medical devices: In some medical devices, such as surgical instruments and dental instruments, tungsten metal particles can be used to manufacture key components. For example, tungsten steel material can be used in the head of dental drills to improve the hardness and wear resistance of drills and extend their service life.

Sports equipment field:

Golf clubs: Tungsten particles are used in the weighting of golf clubs. By adding tungsten metal particles counterweights to specific parts of the clubs, the centre of gravity and weight distribution of the clubs can be adjusted to improve the stability of the clubs’ swing and the distance of the shots.

Fishing Gear: In the manufacture of fishing rods, tungsten particles are used to make fish pendants. The high density of tungsten allows the pendant to sink quickly and remain stable in the current, improving the efficiency of fishing.