High pressure low temperature hot pressing method for producing a zirconium carbide ceramic

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9540286-B2
Application number	US-201414182844-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 18, 2014
Priority date	Feb 25, 2013
Publication date	Jan 10, 2017
Grant date	Jan 10, 2017

Abstract

A method for producing monolithic Zirconium Carbide (ZrC) is described. The method includes raising a pressure applied to a ZrC powder until a final pressure of greater than 40 MPa is reached; and raising a temperature of the ZrC powder until a final temperature of less than 2200° C. is reached.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method of producing hot-pressed monolithic ZrC, comprising:
raising a pressure applied to a powder consisting of ZrC of 99.5% purity until a final pressure of 40 to 60 MPa is reached;
raising a temperature of the ZrC powder until a final temperature between 1800 and 2200° C. is reached;
placing the ZrC powder and an inert gas into a container;
forming a grain size of the monolithic ZrC of less than 12 microns; and
compressing the monolithic ZrC to 96%-98% of a theoretical density, wherein the raising the pressure further comprises:
raising the pressure at a first rate until a first pressure is reached;
maintaining the first pressure;
raising the pressure at a second rate until a second pressure is reached;
raising the pressure at a third rate until a third pressure is reached; and
raising the pressure at a fourth rate until the final pressure is reached.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the raising the temperature of the ZrC powder further comprises:
raising the temperature of the ZrC powder to a first temperature;
maintaining the first temperature; and
raising the temperature of the ZrC powder to the final temperature.

3. The method of claim 2 , further comprising maintaining the final pressure and the final temperature simultaneously.

Assignees

• Us Energy
• Us Dept Energy

Inventors

• Cockeram Brian V

Classifications

• C04B35/5622

  based on zirconium or hafnium carbides · CPC title

• C04B2235/786

  Micrometer sized grains, i.e. from 1 to 100 micron · CPC title

• C04B35/645 Primary

  Pressure sintering · CPC title

• C04B2235/6562

  Heating rate · CPC title

• C04B2235/77

  Density · CPC title