Boron carbide is a superiorly hard material composed of boron atoms and carbon atoms in a crystal structure, and it is one of the hardest materials known after diamond and cubic boron nitride, so it is also known as "Black Diamond". However, compared with diamond and cubic boron nitride, boron carbide is easy to manufacture and low cost. Hardness and wear resistance are the most significant properties of boron carbide, with a Mohs hardness of 9.497. In addition, boron carbide has high melting point (about 2450 °C), a strong resistance to chemical corrosion, and it also has a very low coefficient of thermal expansion, which means that it does not expand or contract with changes in temperature. Due to the above excellent chemical properties and high hardness, boron carbide is used in a variety of industrial applications, including abrasive (one of the main abrasive materials), refractory materials and neutron absorbers for nuclear power plants, for making armor plates for body armor, etc.
Applications
- Abrasive: Boron carbide is an excellent grinding and polishing material, which is commonly used for the grinding and polishing of precision components such as optical lenses, semiconductor wafers and ceramic parts.
- Refractory materials: Boron carbide has the characteristics of oxidation resistance and high temperature resistance, and is generally used as advanced shaped and amorphous refractory materials widely used in various fields of metallurgy, such as steel stoves, kiln ware and so on.
- Bulletproof materials: Due to high hardness, high strength and low specific gravity, its bulletproof performance is high and especially in line with the requirements of lightweight bulletproof material. Thus, it is widely used as bulletproof material for aircraft, vehicles, armor, human body and others.
- Nuclear industry: Boron carbide has a high neutron absorption cross section and a wide energy spectrum to absorb neutrons, and is internationally recognized as the best neutron absorber for the nuclear industry. In addition, boron carbide has good corrosion resistance and thermal stability, and does not produce radioactive isotopes, so boron carbide is widely used as control materials and shielding materials in nuclear reactors.
Our Products
Alfa Chemistry specializes in producing high-quality boron carbide powder for a variety of industrial and scientific applications. We provide the different grades boron carbide in FEPA sizes, ANSI/ISO sizes as well as custom sizes.
| Products | Abrasive grade boron carbide | Ceramic grade boron carbide | Refractory grade boron carbide | Nuclear grade boron carbide | Armour grade boron carbide |
| Product code | BCM-1 | BCM-2 | BCM-3 | BCM-4 | BCM-5 |
| Appearance | Black | Black | Black | Black | Black |
| Chemical composition | B + C min. | 98% | 99% | 94% | 98% | 91% |
| B (Boron) min. | 76% | 77% | 75% | 76% | 74% |
| C (Carbon) max. | 23% | 22.5% | 24% | 24% | 21% |
| B2O3 | 0.50% | 0.10% | 1.0% | 0.10% | - |
| Fe (Iron) max. | 0.2% | 0.10% | 0.5% | 0.10% | - |
| Si (Silicon) | - | 0.01% | 0.3% | 0.01% | - |
| Isotope B10 (atomic weight) | - | - | - | 19.5-21.5% | - |
| Physical data | Knoop hardness (0.1): 3000; Mohs hardness: < 9.5; Specific gravity: 2.51g/cm3 ; Structure: Monocrystalline |
Available Size
All of our boron carbide products (BCM-1, BCM-2, BCM-3, BCM-4, BCM-5) are available in a wide and comprehensive range of grit sizes, and the typical grit sizes include:
| FEPA Standard | F100 (150/106 µm) | F120 (125/90 µm) | F150 (106/63 µm) | F180 (90/53 µm) |
| F220 (75/45 µm) | F240 (70/28 µm) | F280 (59/22 µm) | F320 (49/16.5 µm) |
| F360 (40/12 µm) | F400 (32/8 µm) | F500 (25/5 µm) | F600 (19/3 µm) |
| F800 (14/2 µm) | F1000 (10/1 µm) | F1200 (7/1 µm) | F1500 (<5µm) |
| ANSI/ISO Standard | 24# | 36# | 46# | 60# |
| 80# | 90# | 100# | 120# |
| 150# | 180# | 220# | 240# |
| 280# | | | |
Note: Other sizes are also available on request.
Alfa Chemistry is the world's leading manufacturer and marketer of superhard material, and we provide you with a wide range of high-quality boron carbide powders, including abrasive grade boron carbide powder, ceramic grade boron carbide powder, refractory grade boron carbide powder, nuclear grade boron carbide powder and armour grade boron carbide powder. All products have a comprehensive range of sizes and specifications to meet your various needs. Our boron carbide powders are produced using the latest manufacturing techniques and equipment, ensuring consistent quality and performance. If the product you need is not in our product catalog, we can also customize the product according to your needs. Please feel free to contact us, if necessary.
Please kindly note that our products and services are for research use only.
