Carbide is often considered to be one of the most valuable types of scrap metal that you can find. In fact, more people have trouble actually finding carbide than looking for scrap carbide recycling.
What exactly is Tungsten Carbide?
One of the strongest materials known to man is tungsten carbide. As a matter of fact, it is almost just as hard as diamonds. Without going too far into the details, let’s just say this stuff is strong.
Scrap tungsten carbide, which is also often referred to as scrap carbide, is frequently found in the form of mill tools. The reason for this is that carbide tools can actually last for decades and will only need to be sharpened a few times during that period.
Tungsten carbide is also quite heavy. In fact, it is almost as heavy as gold and twice as heavy as steel. This means that it will not take very much at all to come up with several pounds, which could mean a considerable amount of money with very little effort for scrap carbide recycling.
The Difference between Tungsten Carbide and Carbide
There is a little bit of confusion that must be clarified. Actually, there are three different technical terms that you will probably here the scrap specialists use. Around the scrap yard, they all have similar meanings associated with metal that has been impregnated with tungsten carbide.
To be precise, tungsten carbide is not actually a metal. It is in fact a ceramic compound made up of equal amounts of carbon and tungsten. However, very rarely is tungsten carbide ever used in its ceramic form. Tungsten carbide can also be used in compounds that are two parts tungsten and one part carbon, but is then referred to as tungsten semi-carbide.
What most people think of when they hear the term carbide is actually known as cemented carbide. In reality, it is from five percent to twenty-five percent cobalt by weight. Cemented carbide is kind of like gelatin with a lot of fruit in it. The cobalt would act as the gelatin while the tungsten carbide would be the fruit that makes the gelatin super dense and much stronger. Simply said, cemented carbide with a large amount of tungsten carbide is rather strong.
Carbide is the scientific word used to describe “a compound of carbon with something more electro-negative”. It is not very specific and could refer to any compound containing carbide. Fortunately, those in the business of scrap carbide recycling know that you are probably talking about cemented carbide.