Wholesale tungsten carbide rings are becoming increasingly popular amongst consumers, particularly as engagement and wedding bands. With their strength, durability, and scratch resistance, these rings make a great choice for people who want to wear a ring that will last them for the rest of their lives. In order to purchase a high quality tungsten carbide ring, however, it is important to understand the difference between tungsten and tungsten carbide. Often, the two terms are used interchangeably by retailers and websites, but there is a significant difference between the two. Tungsten, as a standalone metal, is much too difficult to construct into a ring. It is, therefore, combined with other metals in order to create a more durable ring. These other metals typically include nickel, titanium, and carbon in addition to tungsten. In some cases, less durable metals such as aluminum are also used.
Tungsten carbide, also known as tungsten carbide cobalt or cemented carbide, is an alloy of tungsten and carbon. The tungsten carbide forms the matrix while the carbon acts as the aggregate. This is a very hard material that has good abrasion and impact resistance, but can be brittle at elevated temperatures. Carbide cutting tools are commonly produced from sintered tungsten carbide-cobalt and are used for machining applications that would otherwise require steel tools to be discarded because of the wear that they experience.
Tungsten carbide is also used as an neutron reflector and as a shield against radiation in nuclear reactors. It is a very effective material for nuclear fuel rods as it can stop nuclear chain reactions from going critical by reflecting neutrons back into the subcritical mass. These properties have led to the use of tungsten carbide in many nuclear weapons and other nuclear devices. The tungsten carbide material in these nuclear devices can be reinforced with other hard metals such as cobalt or iron in order to increase their effectiveness and life span.
