Patent ID: 7211218

Claim:
A method for making a composite material comprising the steps of: combining a powder selected from the group consisting of diamond, cubic boron nitride, and mixtures thereof, with a first polymer binder to form a first mixture, and forming the first mixture into a plurality of granules; combining one or more powders selected from the group consisting of materials having a degree of ductility that is greater than that of the granules with a second polymer binder to fonn a second mixture in the form of a slurry; combining the plurality of granules with the second mixture, and forming the combined granules and second mixture into a green-state part; and subjecting the green-state part to a high-temperature high-pressure process to provide a sintered composite microstructure comprising the plurality of granules distributed within a substantially continuous matrix formed from the second mixture, wherein sintered composite microstructure comprises in the range of from about 30 to 80 percent by volume granules based on the total volume of the composite.