Material details
Carbide grades for tools and their properties
Low cobalt content (4–6%)
• High hardness
• High wear resistance
• Low toughness
Used for:
• High-speed machining
• Hard, abrasive materials (cast iron, hard non-ferrous metals)
• Cutting edges with sharp geometries
Medium cobalt content (6–10%)
• A good balance of hardness and toughness
• Highly versatile
Used for:
• General machining
• Milling, turning and drilling
• Medium-difficulty materials (unhardened and alloy steels)
High cobalt content (10–20%)
• Greater toughness
• Lower hardness
• Better resistance to impact and breakage
Used for:
• Interrupted cutting (discontinuous machining)
• Tough materials (stainless and heat-treated steels)
• Heavy-duty or vibration-prone operations
Properties
Heat resistance
Good (up to 800–1000°C)
Cutting speed
Medium
Abrasive-wear resistance
High
Hardness (HV)
1400–1800 HV
Chemical stability
Moderate
Ideal for
A wide range, including steels and stainless steels
Ceramic tool grades and their properties
White ceramic (Al2O3 – pure alumina)
• Very hard and thermally stable, but not very tough
• Hardness: ~1800–2000 HV
Used for:
• Machining high-speed steels and stainless steels
Pink ceramic (Al2O3 + Cr2O3)
• Like white ceramic, but slightly tougher and more wear-resistant
• Similar hardness: ~1800–2000 HV
Used for:
• Machining steels and hardened steels
Green ceramic (silicon nitride – Si3N4)
• Very tough and far more resistant to thermal shock than alumina.
• Hardness: ~1500–1600 HV
Used for:
• Machining glass, ceramics, hard metals and sintered materials
Properties
Heat resistance
Very high
(up to 1200–1400°C)
Cutting speed
Extremely high
(up to 5–10× that of carbide)
Abrasive-wear resistance
High
Hardness (HV)
1800–2500 HV
(depending on the grade)
Chemical stability
Excellent on high-temperature materials
Ideal for
Cast iron, superalloys, hard materials