Ceramic-reinforced metal matrix composites (MMCs) display beneficial properties owing to their combination of ceramic and metal phases. However, the properties are highly dependent on the reinforcing phase composition, volume fraction and morphology. Continuous fiber or network reinforcement morphologies are difficult and expensive to manufacture, and the often-used discontinuous particle or whisker reinforcement morphologies result in less effective properties. Here, we demonstrate the formation of a co-continuous ceramic-reinforced metal matrix composite using solid-state processing. Binder jet additive manufacturing (BJAM) was used to print a nickel superalloy part followed by post-processing via reactive sintering to form a continuous carbide reinforcing phase at the particle boundaries. The kinetics of reinforcement formation are investigated in order to develop a relationship between reactive sintering time, temperature and powder composition on the reinforcing phase thickness and volume fraction. To evaluate performance, the wear resistance of the reinforced BJAM alloy 625 MMC was compared to unreinforced BJAM alloy 625, demonstrating a 64 % decrease in the specific wear rate under abrasive wear conditions.

陶瓷增强金属基复合材料（MMC）由于具有陶瓷相和金属相的组合而显示出有益的性能。但是，性能高度依赖于增强相的组成，体积分数和形态。连续的纤维或网状增强形态难以制造且昂贵，并且经常使用的不连续颗粒或晶须增强形态导致较差的性能。在这里，我们演示了使用固态工艺形成的共连续陶瓷增强金属基复合材料。粘合剂喷射增材制造（BJAM）用于印刷镍超合金零件，然后通过反应烧结进行后处理，以在颗粒边界形成连续的碳化物增强相。为了形成反应性烧结时间，温度和粉末组成之间的关系，研究了增强物形成的动力学，这与增强相的厚度和体积分数有关。为了评估性能，将增强的BJAM合金625 MMC与未增强的BJAM 625进行了比较，结果表明在磨料磨损条件下比磨损率降低了64％。