Oxidation behavior of B4C-(ZrB2-SiC) ceramics at 1600 °C

Abstract Pure B 4 C ceramic and B 4 C-(ZrB 2 -SiC) ceramics were fabricated using hot pressing. It was found that the relative density and mechanical properties of the B 4 C based ceramics were greatly improved by using the introduction of (ZrB 2 -SiC) additives. The BZS20 ceramic was found to exhibit the optimal mechanical behavior after overall consideration of flexural strength and Vickers hardness. Most importantly, the oxidation behavior of the BZS00, BZS10, BZS20 and BZS30 ceramics were investigated at 1600 °C. The introduction of (ZrB 2 -SiC) additives significantly enhanced the anti-oxidation behavior of the B 4 C based ceramics. After experiments and analysis, the BZS20 ceramic were believed to exhibit the excellent combination properties of high density, high strength and good oxidation resistance.