Synthesis and Process of Boron-Rich Boron Carbide

"A program is proposed to develop a low-cost, high-volume process to synthesize and fabricate boron-rich boron carbide. Rapid Carbothermal Reduction (RCR) is used to synthesize the sub-micron boron carbide powder. This continuous synthesis process enable(1) the control of volatilization of boron oxide, (2) the tailoring of stoichiometry, and (3) the elimination of acid washing or powder comminution. Hot pressing and pressureless sintering provide a low-cost, high-throughput component manufacturing.Large panel fabrication and near-net-shaped manufacturing will be demonstrated in the program.Each unit operation in the powder synthesis and ceramic fabrication will be optimized. The relationship between processing, stoichiometry, microstructure and properties will be established, and selected component performance will be evaluated. Potentialapplications will be surveyed. It is anticipated that the resulting boron-rich boron carbide can be used as advanced armor strike-faces, industrial wear components and nuclear shields.The program is based on Ceradyne's extensive development, manufacturing, application and marketing for advanced technical ceramics. The optimization of rapid carbothermal reduction will be conducted at the University of Colorado, and a commercial powderproducer, OMG Group, will perform the analysis for the scale-up of the powder synthesis. This strong team of ceramic manufacturing, synthesis development and powd