Pressureless densification and properties of TiB2–B4C composite ceramics with Ni as additives

Titanium diboride–boron carbide (TiB2–B4C) composite ceramics were prepared using different amounts of Ni as sintering aids by pressureless sintering at 2100°C for 60 min under an argon atmosphere. This study focused on the effects of different amounts of Ni as additives on densification and mechanical and thermal properties of TiB2–B4C composite ceramics. Results showed that the relative density, hardness, flexural strength and thermal conductivity of obtained composite ceramics with 1.3 wt% Ni addition were 98%, 20.4 GPa, 330 MPa and 30 W/m K, respectively. However, fracture toughness was 6 MPa m1/2 when the content of Ni was fixed at 2.2 wt%.