Improvements of the microstructure and erosion resistance of boron carbide with additives

A series of test materials were produced from boron carbide (B4C) powders with additions of either boron in amounts up to 60 wt.%, silicon (4 wt.%) or silicon and silicon carbide (4 wt.% and 30 wt.%, respectively). The powder mixtures were densified by encapsulation hot-isostatic pressing. The test materials where evaluated in dry particle erosion tests with silicon carbide grits. Particular attention was given to the relation between the microstructure and the composition. It was found that boron additions up to 20 wt.%, decreased the average grain size and reduced the porosity of the boron carbide. A material with 60 wt.% boron exhibited very low porosity and supreme resistance to particle erosion. The erosion resistance was also significantly improved by additions of silicon and silicon carbide. The favorable effects of boron, silicon and silicon carbide are discussed in terms of their influence on microstructural parameters, such as grain size, porosity, grain boundaries and reduction of free carbon. (C) 2000 Kluwer Academic Publishers.