Influence of sintering temperature on hardness of CaB₆ sintered body

Abstract

The influence of sintering temperature on vickers hardness of calcium hexaboride (CaB₆)sintered body was investigated. CaB₆ powder with of about 10μm in size was used in this experiment. The sample sintered at 1673 to 1923K for 3.6ks in vacuum by hot-pressing. The relative density of the sintered body increased with increasing sintering temperature. Relative density of the sample was 90% more than sintering temperature at 1873K. The relative density of sample sintered at 1923K showed 94%. The vickers hardness of the sample increased drastically with increasing relative density from about 4 to 8GPa for 90 to 94%.