Preparation and Characterization of Reaction Sintering B4C/SiC Composite Ceramic

High hardness, high strength, high fracture toughness and low density are required for novel bulletproof materials. B4C/SiC composite ceramic is one of the most potential candidates. In this study, B4C/SiC composite ceramic was prepared by reaction sintering. The influence of B4C content, species and content of carbon, sintering temperature on the mechanical properties of B4C/SiC composite ceramic were studied. A high performance B4C/SiC composite ceramic was sintered at 1750 degrees C for 30 min. Phenolic resin and carbon black were both chosen as carbon sources, whose favorable contents were 10wt%, 5wt%, respectively. The density of sintered bodies reduces with B4C content increases. To some extent, fracture toughness, bending strength improve initially and then deteriorate with the increase of B4C content whose optimal amount is 30wt%. The optimal fracture toughness and bending strength of the B4C/SiC composite ceramic are 5.07MPa.m(1/2) and 487MPa, respectively. Meanwhile, the Viker-hardness of the sintered body is 30.2GPa, the density is as low as 2.82g/cm(3).