The effect of silver coated copper particle content on the properties of novel Cu-Ag alloys prepared by hot pressing method

Abstract In this work, the properties of novel Cu-Ag alloys reinforced with silver coated copper particles fabricated by hot pressing were systematically discussed for the first time. The effect of silver coated copper particle content on the microstructure, density, hardness, tensile strength and oxidation resistance of Cu-Ag alloys were investigated in detail. The silver coated copper particles were uniformly distributed within the copper matrix. With the increase of Ag coated Cu particle content, 100 wt% Cu-Ag alloy indicated denser microstructure than that of pure Cu. The tensile strength of 100 wt% Cu-Ag alloy was nearly 2 times higher than that of Cu samples. Electrical conductivity measured for Cu-Ag alloys was 24% higher than that of Cu samples. The oxidation resistance of Cu-Ag alloys increased with the silver coated copper particle content. In this context, the oxidation resistance of Cu-Ag alloys was 31% higher than that of Cu samples.