Boron Carbide for Ceramic

Boron Carbide, or B4C, is an extremely hard ceramic material discovered in 1899. With a Mohs hardness between 9 and 10, boron carbide is one of the hardest synthetic substances known, exceeded only by cubic boron nitride (CBN) and diamond. Besides, it has good chemical inertness and a high neutron absorption cross-section. Thus, it is a suitable material for many high-performance applications, such as anti-oxidant in carbon-bonded refractory mixes, reactor control rods, and neutron-absorbing shielding in nuclear applications.