ORIGINAL ARTICLE Nickel-cobalt-based materials for diamond cutting tools M. M. Costa 1 & P. Flores 1 & D. Pereira 1 & M. Buciumeanu 2 & A. Cabral 3 & M. Fredel 3 & F. S. Silva 1 & B. Henriques 1,3 & G. Miranda 1 Received: 31 July 2017 /Accepted: 16 October 2017 # Springer-Verlag London Ltd. 2017 Abstract Cobalt is nowadays the most used binding material for diamond cutting tools (DCTs), once it grants a suitable retention of diamond particles during in-service conditions. However, cobalt is an expensive and toxic material, being thus necessary to find effective alternatives that suit the require- ments of this tool. In this context, this study focuses on the production of different nickel-cobalt-based materials, aiming to decrease cobalt content in cutting tools. Unreinforced Ni- Co-based materials (Ni-Co; Ni-Co-WC; Ni-Co-Cr 3 C 2 ) and also Ni-Co-based materials reinforced with 4 wt% of diamond particles were produced by hot pressing, with a sintering tem- perature of 900 °C, under a pressure of 70 MPa, during 15 min. These materials were characterized regarding their microstructure, hardness, and shear strength. In order to assess these materials, tribological properties, and cutting perfor- mance, pin-on-disc wear tests, with the diamond-reinforced Ni-Co-based materials serving as pin and a stone serving as disc, were also performed. Results revealed that the best cut- ting performance was displayed by diamond-reinforced Ni- Co-WC, having the highest disc/pin wear ratio among the produced materials. Keywords Diamond cutting tools . Ni-Co-based materials . Stone cutting . Hot pressing . Microstructure . Wear behavior 1 Introduction Diamond cutting tools (DCTs) are typically composite mate- rials in which diamonds are the reinforcing abrasive particles that are impregnated in a metallic matrix [1–3]. These tools are commonly used in stone cutting industries [1–3]. In DCTs, the metallic matrix is accountable for the cohe- siveness of the cutting tool while the diamond particles are responsible for the cutting process. In this sense, several as- pects must be regarded: the type of diamond (natural or syn- thetic), the diamond content in the composite, the bonding strength between the diamond and the matrix, and an adequate relation between the wear rates of the diamond particles and of the matrix [4]. Ideally, the wear rates of the matrix and of the diamond particles must be similar, in order to allow their re- placement when the particles lose their abrasiveness. This will ensure a constant cutting rate, with the emergence of new particles when the worn ones are detached during the matrix wear [1, 4, 5]. In this sense, an appropriate selection of the matrix material is mandatory since it should guarantee a suit- able wear resistance and not affect diamond properties. Moreover, in order to promote a good diamond entrapment, it is important to promote a good chemical and physical inter- action between the diamond particles and the metal matrix [1, 2], in order to withstand the forces generated during the cut- ting process [6]. The stone cutting process, similarly to grinding process, is a machining process that takes place by geometrically unde- fined cutting edges, used for cutting stone using diamond tools [7, 8]. During the cutting process, at the stone-tool interface, tangential forces will create tensile and compressive stresses, * M. M. Costa amafmcosta@gmail.com 1 Center for Micro-Electro Mechanical Systems (CMEMS-UMinho), University of Minho, Campus de Azurém, 4800-058 Guimarães, Portugal 2 Cross-Border Faculty of Humanities, Economics and Engineering, University of Galati, Dunarea de Jos, Domneasca 47, 800008 Galati, Romania 3 Ceramic and Composite Materials Research Group (CERMAT), Federal University of Santa Catarina (UFSC), Campus Trindade, Florianópolis, SC, Brazil Int J Adv Manuf Technol https://doi.org/10.1007/s00170-017-1226-9