HfB2 Powder / Hafnium Diboride Powder

Hafnium Diboride Powder

Hafnium Diboride belongs to the class of very high-temperature ceramics, a type of ceramics composed of hafnium and boron. It has a melting temperature of about 3250 degrees Celsius. It is an unusual ceramic, with relatively high thermal and electrical conductivity, properties that it shares with isostructural titanium diboride, and zirconium diboride. It is a gray metallic material. The hafnium diboride has a hexagonal crystalline structure, a molar mass of 200.11 grams per mole, and a density of 10.5 grams per cubic centimeter.
Hafnium diboride is often combined with carbon, boron, silicon, silicon carbide, and/or nickel to improve the consolidation of hafnium diboride powder (sintering). It is commonly formed in a solid by a process called hot molding, in which the powders are pressed together using heat and pressure.
The material is potentially usable in hypervelocity return vehicles such as ICBM thermal shields or aerodynamic edges due to its strength and thermal properties. Unlike polymer and composite material, HfB2 can be formed in aerodynamic shapes that do not light up during re-entry.