Diamond in Metal-Tungsten Carbide

A watch is not only a time-telling tool but also a kind of accessory which can represent the taste of a gentleman. Therefore, a fashionable and stylish watch can show a man’s unique taste and his charm.

Speaking of watch, we must mention the watch made in Switzerland. The well-known and expensive Rolex watch is made in Switzerland. However, most people do not know that most straps of Swiss watches are made of tungsten carbide, which is not produced in Switzerland but from China. 

You may know that Switzerland has strict regulations on “Swiss Made” and “Swiss Made” watches. The movement of watch adopts the logo of “Swiss Movement”. The quartz watch is labeled with “Swiss Quartz”, and the watch case is also labeled with “Swiss Case”. Even the strap must have "Swiss Strap" logo on it. A real Swiss watch is labeled with the Swiss logo everywhere. It seems that they are afraid that we don’t know the watch is made in Switzerland. Tungsten carbide has been applied to a lot of accessories, such as watches. Although it is not produced in Switzerland and it is from China, it can’t be identified as “Made in China”. 

You may have a lot of questions to ask. What is tungsten carbide? Why is the tungsten carbide called as “Diamond in the metal”? Is there any reason? In daily life, how should we maintain tungsten carbide jewelry? Don't worry. We will answer it one by one.

What is tungsten carbide?

Tungsten carbide is a chemical compound containing equal parts of tungsten and carbon atoms. In its most basic form, tungsten carbide is a fine gray powder, but it can be pressed and formed into shapes through a process called sintering. The tungsten carbide has been widely applied to different fields. As for industries, it can also be called cemented carbide when it is applied to some industries. Moreover, tungsten steel can also be made into cutting tools such as turning tools, milling cutters, bits and boring tools, which are used to cut the glass, wood, stainless steel, high manganese steel, tool steel and other materials. In addition, it can also be applied to drilling tools, boring tools, high-precision bearings, nozzles and so on.

What’s more, tungsten steel is also used in military filed. For example, tungsten steel tactical knives are the best equipment for soldiers to fight alone, and they are necessary items for soldiers to defend themselves in the wild.

1. From the public's point of view, tungsten steel is another high-tech product pursued by many technology enthusiasts after space ceramics because tungsten steel has a lot of features favored by consumers. For example, it never fades and is bright as a mirror. Besides, it owns high wear resistance and can stand the mechanical shock. There are many styles and patterns for customers to choose.

2. From a professional point of view: tungsten steel, also known as tungsten carbide, refers to the alloy which is formed by using at least one metal carbide (tungsten carbide, titanium carbide, tantalum carbide, etc.) and binder metal (cobalt, nickel) through a powder metallurgy process. The alloy owns excellent properties such as heat resistance, corrosion resistance, high hardness, wear resistance, and good strength and toughness.

3. According to the folk novel about tungsten steel, the ancient book Stories of Immortals has recorded that Gan Jiang and Mo Ye were ordered by the King of Chu to produce a sword which could cut the iron easily. According to some people’s investigation, one of the main materials of Mogan sword is a kind of high-purity tungsten steel. 

4. From the fashion world’s point of view, tungsten jewelry is recognized as the jewelry which is comparable to diamonds. The reason why tungsten can be comparable to diamonds is that tungsten carbide has a hard texture just like diamond. Its production process is similar to the cutting process of diamonds. Both tungsten carbide and diamond need strict technical conditions to support. In addition, tungsten carbide is not naturally formed, so there are strict formulation requirements for its production. “A piece of tungsten carbide can cut 168 facets.” is not an important fact for people who like tungsten jewelry. The most important thing is that it can shine bright like a diamond under the sunshine owing to the facets.

Does tungsten carbide deserve the reputation of “Diamond in the metal”?

The Mohs hardness of tungsten carbide is 8.5-9.5 M, which is close to the Mohs hardness of the diamond (10 M). Its hardness can remain basically unchanged even at a temperature of 500 ° C and still has a high hardness at 1000 ° C. Therefore, it deserves the title of “Diamond in metal”. In the fashion world, many people think that tungsten steel jewelry can be comparable to diamonds. In fact, tungsten steel has a glittering name in the fashion world, that is, “tungsten gold”. 

How to maintain tungsten carbide jewelry?

1. When you are wearing the tungsten carbide jewelry, you should be careful and prevent the jewelry from being scratched by the hard material and being damaged.

2. Jewelry should not be exposed to corrosive substances such as strong acids and alkalis for a long time to ensure that the jewelry will last forever.

3. We recommend taking the accessories off when you are taking a bath, taking sauna, swimming, diving, taking a bath in hot springs or sweating a lot.

4. You should also be careful not to spray perfume, hair gel, etc. on the accessory. If you accidentally spray the perfume on it, it should be immediately cleaned

5. For tungsten steel gold-plated ornaments, the most important thing is to protect the coating because the gold film is fragile. That is to say, we should prevent the gold-plated film on the surface of the ornaments as far as possible from rubbing against other hard objects and from contacting corrosive chemicals.

If you have any information about tungsten carbide, you can share with us. We are glad to receive your information. Please contact Chinatungsten Online.

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