THE PREPARATION OF ULTRAFINE TUNGSTEN CARBIDE NANOPARTICLES BY DC ARC DISCHARGE PLASMA PROCESS

Tungsten carbide nanoparticles were synthesized successfully by DC arc discharge plasma process with 23 A discharge current at atmospheric pressure, in which tungsten positive electrode reacted with carbon black produced from the benzene cracking. The XRD results indicate that the samples consist of carbon black, WC and W2 C. The TEM micrographs show that the tungsten carbide particles range from 3 to 7 nm in size, and are composed of WC and W2C.