Аңдатпа
For the (26Fe–25Cr–32Cu–9Ni–8Sn) + ZrO2 matrix material used in Сdiamond–(Fe–Cr–Cu–Ni–Sn) composite materials formed by spark plasma sintering, the dependences of the relative density ρrel, ultimate compression Rcm and bending Rbm strength, microhardness HV, and fracture toughness KIс on the zirconia content has been established by using samples with different ZrO2 content. The addition of 10% ZrO2 to the 26Fe–25Cr–32Cu–9Ni–8Sn composite increases the relative density ρrel from 0.987 to 0.997, the ultimate compression strength Rcm from 950 ± 35 to 1510 ± 45 MPa, the ultimate bending strength Rbm from 750 ± 20 to 1140 ± 35 MPa, the microhardness HV from 8.0 ± 0.25 to 9.0 ± 0.42 GPa, and the fracture toughness KIс from 6.5 ± 0.35 to 9.2 ± 0.42 MPa m0.5. Such parameters are caused by tetragonal t-ZrO2 phase transformation and, correspondingly, an increasing role of transformation strengthening, and a decrease in the grain size, as ZrO2 is an inhibitor of grains for the major Fe and Cr phases under sintering. In the 26Fe–25Cr–32Cu–9Ni–8Sn sample ( $${{C}_{{{\text{Zr}}{{{\text{O}}}_{{\text{2}}}}}}}$$ = 0%) under indentation, there occur many cracks of considerable size both in the inner area of a Vickers pyramid imprint and around it to result in excessive brittleness and destruction in the material. This is due to agglomeration in the process of mixing the components, their separation under sintering, and the formation of micropores and microcracks to be a main reason of low values for ρrel, Rcm, Rbm, HV, and KIс. At a zirconia nanopowder content $${{C}_{{{\text{Zr}}{{{\text{O}}}_{{\text{2}}}}}}}$$ = 10%, the cracks in the matrix near the indentor imprint become poorly visible, and the material is not almost destructed in the vicinity of the indentor imprint. The results obtained for the relative density ρrel in combination with high mechanical characteristics (Rcm, Rbm, HV, and KIс) of sintered (26Fe–25Cr–32Cu–9Ni–8Sn) + ZrO2 matrix material samples enable their application for the production of composite diamond-containing materials with increased mechanical and service characteristics.