The paper presents results of investigations on the binderless nanostructured tungsten carbide (WC) cutting tools fabrication and performance. The scientific novelty includes the description of some regularities of the powder consolidation under electric current and the subsequent possibility to utilize them for practical use in the fabrication of cutting tools. The sintering process of WC nanopowder was performed with the electroconsolidation method, which is a modification of spark plasma sintering (SPS). Its advantages include low temperatures and short sintering time which allows retaining nanosize grains of ca. 70 nm, close to the original particle size of the starting powder. In respect to the application of the cutting tools, pure WC nanostructure resulted in a smaller cutting edge radius providing a higher quality of TiC/Fe machined surface. In the range of cutting speeds, vc = 15–40 m/min the durability of the inserts was 75% of that achieved by cubic boron nitride ones, and more than two times better than that of WC-Co cutting tools. In additional tests of machining 13CrMo4 material at an elevated cutting speed of vc = 100 m/min, binderless nWC inserts worked almost three times longer than WC-Co composites.

In the paper, the results of experimental investigations of ion implanted cutting tools performance are presented. The tools, made out of Si3N4 with additives typically used for turning of Ti-6Al-4V alloy, underwent implantation with ions of yttrium (Y+) and rhenium (Re+) using the metal vapor vacuum arc method. Distribution of ions on the tool surface was measured. The cutting tools were tested in turning process with measurement of cutting forces and analysis of wear. A rather unexpected result was the increased wear of the tool after Y+ implantation with 1 × 1017 ion/cm2. It was demonstrated, however, that the tool after Y+ 2 × 1017 ion/cm2 ion implantation provided the best machining performance.

Peculiarities of formation of microstructure in composites based on chemically synthesized zirconium nanopowders obtained by the method of decomposition from fluoride salts were considered. Hydrofluoric acid, concentrated nitric acid, aqueous ammonia solution, metallic zirconium, and polyvinyl alcohol were used. It was established that the reduction of porosity in nanopowders in the sintering process is the main problem in the formation of high-density materials. Analysis of various initial nanopowders, their morphology, and features of sintering by the method of hot pressing with direct transmission of electric current was made. Peculiarities of obtaining the composites based on them with the addition of Al2O3 nanopowders applying the electric sintering method were considered. It was shown that the increase in the content of alumina nano additives leads to an increase in strength and crack resistance of the samples due to simultaneous inhibition of abnormal grain growth and formation of a finer structure with a high content of tetragonal phase. The influence of sintering modes on the formation of the microstructure of zirconium nanopowders has been studied for different contents of alumina additives. Electric current promotes the surface activity of nanopowders and its variable value promotes partial fragmentation of agglomerated grains thus affecting the composite structure. Physical-mechanical properties of the obtained samples, optimal compositions of mixtures, and possibilities of improving some parameters were determined. It was found that nanopowders of zirconium dioxide obtained by the method of decomposition from fluoride salts are quite suitable for the production of composite materials with high physical and mechanical properties. They can compete with imported analogs and enable obtaining of crack resistance of 7.8 MPa·m1/2 and strength of 820 MPa.

In the paper, a novel technique for highly dispersed pyrochlore Y2Ti2O7 is proposed. The experimental results proved that the application of microwave irradiation at a certain stage of calcination allowed synthesizing of Y2Ti2O7 in much shorter time, which ensured substantial energy savings. An increase up to 98 wt.% in the content of the preferred phase with a pyrochlore-type structure Y2Ti2O7 was obtained after 25 h of yttrium and titanium oxides calcination at a relatively low temperature of 1150 °C, while the microwave-supported process took only 9 h and provided 99 wt.% of pyrochlore. The proposed technology is suitable for industrial applications, enabling the fabrication of large industrial amounts of pyrochlore without solvent chemistry and high-energy mills. It reduced the cost of both equipment and energy and made the process more environmentally friendly. The particle size and morphology did not change significantly; therefore, the microwave-assisted method can fully replace the traditional one.

In this study, the effect of the addition of silicon carbide to alumina ceramics commonly used in cutting tool applications is addressed. Performance of Al2O3–SiC composite cutting inserts during the machining of hardened steels and ductile iron was compared to the results obtained for a cutting tool made out of 99 wt.% Al2O3, Al2O3–TiC, Al2O3–TiC–ZrO2, and Al2O3–TiN. In almost all tests, the composite with silicon carbide demonstrated better wear resistance, longer tool lifetime, and the ability to cut at higher speeds. The enhanced properties of cutting tools with SiC can be attributed to the morphology and dimensions of the inclusions in the matrix as well as to the strength of the interphase boundaries, small porosity, and lack of high inner stresses in the volume.