Abstract
In the present study, the composite titanium (Ti) powder coated with un-bundled carbon black (CB) particles was prepared via a wet process using black ink solution collected from the used ink cartridges of inkjet printing. Un-bundled CB particles were independently and uniformly dispersed in the black ink, and coated on the pure Ti powder surface by dipping the powder into the ink. This coating process showed a uniform distribution of CB particles, and their agglomeration was never detected on the composite Ti powder surface. These composite powders were consolidated as powder metallurgy (P/M) titanium matrix composites (TMCs) reinforced with CB particles by spark plasma sintering (SPS) and subsequent hot extrusion. In-situ synthesized titanium carbide (TiC) dispersoids were uniformly distributed in the extruded composites. The TiC dispersion strengthening was effective for improving mechanical properties of the TMC. Consequently, the TMC showed an excellent balance of high tensile strength of 899 MPa and enough elongation of 18.7 % at room temperature.
