At its core, tungsten carbide is a composite material. It’s made by binding hard, wear-resistant tungsten carbide particles (WC) with a softer, more ductile metal binder, most commonly cobalt (Co).
Think of it like this: the tungsten carbide grains are like incredibly hard pieces of gravel, and the cobalt acts as the cement that holds them all together. This combination is created through a process called powder metallurgy, where the materials are mixed, pressed into shape, and then sintered (heated to just below their melting point) in a furnace. The result is a material with a hardness that approaches that of a diamond, which allows it to stay sharp and resist wear at high cutting speeds and temperatures that would quickly destroy traditional high-speed steel (HSS) tools.