Preparation of W-V Functionally Gradient Material by Spark Plasma Sintering

Functionally gradient material (FGM) is promisingly effective in mitigating the thermal stress between plasma facing materials (PFM) and structural materials. However, the corresponding research with respect to W/V FGM has not been reported yet. In this work, we firstly report the successful fabrication of W/V FGM by a combined technology of mechanical alloying (MA) and spark plasma sintering (SPS). The microhardness and microstructure of the consolidated sample were both investigated. W/V stacks show significantly enhanced microhardness (>100%) compared with pure W plate, which is beneficial to the integral strength of the hybrid structure. Furthermore, we clarify that the different ductility of W and V should be carefully considered, otherwise W/V powder might aggregate and lead to the formation of compositional segregation, and simultaneously unmask the impact of V proportion on the distribution of second phase in W–V binary alloy system. This work provides an innovative approach for obtaining W–V connections with much better performance.