Suppressing pore-boundary separation during spark plasma sintering of tungsten

A tungsten powder with bimodal particle size distribution is consolidated by spark plasma sintering (SPS). Effects are made for understanding the densification and grain growth mechanisms and their relations to the SPS processing parameters. By holding the sample at an intermediate temperature, i.e., 1200 degrees C for 5 min, where the densification is enhanced by particle close packing, the pore-boundary separation that yields the formation of entrapped pores inside individual grains at final stage of sintering is suppressed. This optimization of the SPS process is beneficial for preparing fine grained bulk tungsten with homogeneous microstructure from the powders produced in industrial-scale. The prepared tungsten with minimized porosity appears a potential candidate for plasma-facing materials in the divertor region in the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER). (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.