Methods of forming polycrystalline compacts

摘要

Methods of forming a polycrystalline compact using at least one metal salt as a sintering aid. Such methods may include forming a mixture of the at least one metal salt and a plurality of grains of hard material and sintering the mixture to form a hard polycrystalline material. During sintering, the metal salt may melt or react with another compound to form a liquid that acts as a lubricant to promote rearrangement and packing of the grains of hard material. The metal salt may, thus, enable formation of hard polycrystalline material having increased density, abrasion resistance, or strength. The metal salt may also act as a getter to remove impurities (e.g., catalyst material) during sintering. The methods may also be employed to faun cutting elements and earth-boring tools.

主权项

1. A method of forming a polycrystalline compact, the method comprising: combining a plurality of diamond particles with lithium fluoride to form a powder mixture comprising the diamond particles and the lithium fluoride substantially homogeneously dispersed on the diamond particles; and sintering the powder mixture comprising the diamond particles and the lithium fluoride, wherein combining a plurality of diamond particles with fluoride comprises combining the plurality of diamond particles with the lithium fluoride dispersed in an organic solvent.