Reaction sintering of TiN-TiB2 ceramics Original Research Article

Reaction sintering of TiN with B4C addition was carried out at temperatures ranging from 1980–2020 °C. The process involves a reaction between TiN and B4C at temperatures of 1400–1500 °C resulting in the formation of fine highly active TiB2 particles uniformly distributed in a matrix of TiN. The role of extremely fine particles of TiB2 in providing the additional driving force for sintering is discussed. The highest sintered density achieved was over 96%TD at ~2000 °C for samples containing 4wt% B4C. At the highest density, the TiN grain size was <15 μm as opposed to 50–60 μm size for samples with very small or no addition of B4C.