The distribution and existent morphology of rare earth elements in cemented carbide and their influences on the Co phase transformation, impurities, porosities, sintering temperatures, the fractography, friction coefficients and the wetability between phases have been investigated. A comparative study on the application properties of alloys with and without rare earth additives has been performed using the dynamic thermal simulation test. New series grades of RE-containing alloys have been obtained based on this research. Adding the RE additives into our conventional grades has reduced the friction coefficients, increased fee Co content, increased the bending strength and impact resistance by 10% and doubled or obviously extended the lifetime. The cost-effective rare earth can also reduce the production cost owing to the decrease in the metallic Co content.
