Microstructure and mechanical properties of b4c-tib2 composites reactive sintered from B4C + TiO2 precursors

Ceramic composites consisting of a boron carbide (B4C) matrix and titanium diboride (TiB2) secondary phase were obtained by reactive sintering from boron carbide powder with 40 and 50wt.% of titanium dioxide (TiO2) additive. The same sintering temperature of 1850?C and pressure of 35MPa, but different sintering times from 15 to 60min, were applied during reactive hot pressing of the composites in vacuum. The effects of TiO2 content and sintering time on phase compositions, microstructures and mechanical properties of the composites were studied. The TiO2 additive enhanced densification of the B4C-TiB2 ceramic composites. Both Vickers hardness and the fracture toughness of the composites increased with prolongation of sintering time. The highest hardness of 29.8GPa was achieved for the composite with 29.6 vol.% of TiB2 obtained by sintering of the precursor with 40wt.% of TiO2 additive for 60min. The fracture toughness reached a maximum value of 7.5MPa?m1/2 for the composite containing 40.2 vol.% of TiB2, which was fabricated by reactive sintering of the precursor with 50wt.% of TiO2 additive for 60min.