Synthesis of ZrB₂ and ZrB₂-SiC powders using a sucrose-containing system

ZrB₂ and ZrB₂-SiC powders are synthesized by a sol-gel method from zirconium n-propoxide, tetraethyl orthosilicate (only for ZrB₂-SiC), boric acid, and sucrose. After reduction at 1550 °C, both ZrB₂ and ZrB₂-SiC are unconsolidated, soft gray powders. The ZrB₂-SiC particles have an equiaxed shape with a diameter of about 800 nm and a uniform size distribution. The SiC may be very finely distributed, because we barely find SiC among ZrB₂ particles when using energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), although both ZrB₂ and SiC are identified by X-ray diffractometry (XRD).