Due to technological advancement, it has been proved that tungsten carbide is a kind of substance that contains hard particles encompassed by tungsten carbide and a softer metallic binder material that holds the particles in place. It is one of the most durable metals and has various uses throughout many industries. Therefore, tungsten is an important raw material of great economic significance globally. Below are essential facts about tungsten carbide that are important to know and their uses.
Supply of Tungsten Carbide
According to the current data, eighty percent of the world’s supply comes from China. Other tungsten resources are located in South Korea, Portugal, Great Britain, Bolivia, and California. Also, the first use of tungsten dates to more than 350 years ago in China.
- Sources and Forms of Tungsten Carbide
The main source of carbide soft scrap is from metalworking manufacturing industries. Apart from the manufacturing industry, mining, petroleum, and woodworking industries produce tungsten carbide soft scrap.
The following are the various forms you are likely to find in a given tungsten scrap reclamation company:
- Filter scrap includes scrap from carbide cartridge filters that are filled with dry or wet carbide or from paper or metal carbide filters.
- Tungsten alloys include; heviment-sludge and grindings, Mallory allow-sludge and grinding, and densalloy-sludge
- Scrap powder. This is the material used in the thermal spray process for hard facing.
- Security Considerations
Manufacturing industries produce dust in large quantities that are likely to cause respiratory problems once excess amounts go into the atmosphere. Therefore, health and safety measures are put in place to regulate this amount. It is important to know that the same safety standards apply when collecting your soft metal materials for recycling. In addition, store your grindings, sludge, and turnings in a secure area since tungsten carbide is a high-value commodity.
- Melting Point
With regards to all metals, tungsten has the highest melting point. Carbide has a melting point of more than 3000 degrees Fahrenheit, unlike other metals like aluminum, whose melting point is 1221 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Used in Light Bulbs
Tungsten functions as the filament for light bulbs heating elements. When activated, the tungsten filament heats up, thereby producing light in incandescent light bulbs. In addition, tungsten has a highly conductive property that makes it work well in light bulb filaments.
- Used in Jewelry Industry
Good examples of jewelry made from tungsten carbide are wedding bands and some rings. This is as a result of its high resistance to damage, a ring made of tungsten carbide has extreme strength and protection against scratching.
- Used in The Military
Due to its effect on the kinetic bombardment, tungsten is used to make military bullets and missiles. Being a dense material, it can breach armor during an attack.
- Used in Manufacturing Industry
Approximately 65% of the tungsten carbide market is channeled towards making drill bits and other mining and cutting tools. For instance, it can take around 10 minutes to cut just one drill bit from tungsten using a diamond cutting system.
Recycling serves a vital part of the global tungsten flow, and thus a wide variety of recycling technologies for tungsten currently exists. In a tungsten scrap reclamation company, processes are tailored to deal with different scrap types and yield well-defined recycling products.
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