Hafnium Carbide

Hafnium Carbide powder is a black, odourless, fine solid powder consisting of hafnium and carbon with many excellent properties such as high melting point, high hardness, good chemical stability, low coefficient of thermal expansion, good electrical conductivity, etc. It has important applications in many fields such as aerospace, nuclear, machining and electronics.

Properties

Chemical formula: HfC, composed of two elements: hafnium and carbon.

Molecular weight: 190.5325 g/mol.

Appearance: Hafnium Carbide powder is black powder, odourless.

Density: Hafnium Carbide has a high theoretical density of about 12.7 g/cm³.

Melting point: up to 3890°C, one of the highest melting points of any known single compound.

Coefficient of Thermal Expansion: Small, approximately 6.73 x 10-⁶ /°C, which means that the dimensional change is relatively small when the temperature changes, giving it good dimensional stability in high temperature environments.

Hardness: Hafnium Carbide has a Mohs hardness of 9 and a microhardness of 2910 kg/mm², which is very high and allows it to be used in the manufacture of high hardness cutting tools, moulds and wear parts.

Conductivity: Good, with a conductivity of 2.2×10⁴ S/cm; relatively low resistivity of about 4.5×10-⁵Ω・cm, giving it potential for use in electronics and electrical applications.

Solubility: soluble in strong acids such as hydrofluoric acid, hot concentrated sulphuric acid and nitric acid.

Stability: Hafnium Carbide has high chemical stability, it is not easy to react chemically with other substances at room temperature, but may react with some substances at high temperature or under specific conditions. Its solid phase stability is good, chemical corrosion resistance, suitable for use in high temperature and other harsh environments.

Antioxidant: It has good antioxidant performance at high temperature and can maintain good stability in oxidising atmosphere.

Applications

Aerospace field

Thermal Protection Systems: Hafnium Carbide powders are used for thermal barrier coatings in the thermal protection systems of hypersonic vehicles. As the surface of the vehicle is subjected to extremely high temperatures due to friction with the air at high speeds, coatings made from Hafnium Carbide powders are able to withstand such high temperatures and effectively isolate the transfer of heat to the internal structure of the vehicle, thus protecting the airframe structure of the vehicle.

Engine Components: Aircraft engines operate at extremely high temperatures and require high temperature resistance, Hafnium Carbide powders can be used in the manufacture of turbine blades, combustion chambers and other key components of the engine to improve the performance of these components under high temperature, high pressure and high stress environments to ensure the efficient and stable operation of the engine.

Electronics

Heat dissipation materials for electronic devices: As electronic devices are developing towards high performance and miniaturisation, heat dissipation is becoming more and more critical. Hafnium Carbide powders have good thermal conductivity and can be used to prepare high-performance heat sinks or coatings, which can help electronic devices such as computer CPUs and high-power semiconductors to dissipate heat quickly, thus extending the service life of the devices and improving equipment reliability. The material can be used for the preparation of high-performance heat sink or heat dissipation coating.

Electrode materials: Hafnium Carbide powder can be used as electrode material in some special electronic devices, such as high temperature and high power electronic tubes. This is because it not only has good electrical conductivity, but also maintains stable chemical and physical properties at high temperatures, ensuring that the electrodes can work properly under complex operating conditions.

Cutting tools and mould making

Cutting tools: The high hardness of Hafnium Carbide powders makes them ideal for the manufacture of cutting tools. When added to carbide tools, it significantly improves the hardness, wear resistance and cutting performance of the tool. For example, in metalworking, tools containing Hafnium Carbide powders can cut harder metals such as titanium and nickel-based alloys more efficiently and with much longer tool life.

Mould Materials: In mould manufacturing, Hafnium Carbide powders can be used for die casting moulds, injection moulds, etc. It enhances the wear resistance of the moulds. It can enhance the wear resistance of moulds, reduce the wear and deformation of moulds in the process of use, so as to improve the precision and service life of moulds and reduce the production cost.

Nuclear Industry

Control rods for nuclear reactors: Hafnium Carbide powders have a high neutron absorption cross section, which allows them to be used in the manufacture of control rods for nuclear reactors. By inserting and removing the rods, the neutron flux in the reactor can be effectively controlled, thus regulating the rate of the nuclear reaction and ensuring the safe operation of the reactor.

Nuclear Fuel Encapsulation: Hafnium Carbide powder can be used as a potential encapsulation material for nuclear fuel encapsulation. Due to its high temperature and corrosion resistance, it can protect the nuclear fuel from the external environment in the harsh environment of nuclear reactors, preventing safety accidents such as nuclear fuel leakage.

Ceramics and Composites

High-performance ceramic materials: Hafnium Carbide powders can be used to manufacture high-performance ceramic materials. Through powder metallurgy and other processes, they are made into ceramic products, which have a series of excellent properties such as high hardness, high strength, high temperature resistance and wear resistance, and can be used to manufacture mechanical seals, wear-resistant ceramic linings and so on.

Composite Reinforcement: In the field of composites, Hafnium Carbide powder can be used as a reinforcing agent for other matrix materials, such as metal matrix composites or ceramic matrix composites. It can significantly improve the mechanical and high temperature properties of composites and widen the application range of composites.