Abstract:
Owing to the strong covalent bonds and metallic properties, transition metal carbides have excellent properties such as high hardness, high melting point, high electrical conductivity, and corrosion resistance, and have promising applications in extreme environments including aerospace and machining. Currently, the sintering of transition metal carbides requires extremely high temperatures due to their strong covalent bonds and low diffusion coefficients. This makes it challenging to prepare high-density bulk ceramics with excellent performance. The high pressure and high temperature sintering methods can effectively reduce the sintering temperature, shorten the sintering time, inhibit grain growth, improve densification, and maintain the purity of the phase. In this paper, from the perspective of high pressure and high temperature synthesis, the research progress of the preparation, mechanical properties, and microscopic mechanism of several typical transition metal carbides is reviewed, and the prospects and development directions of transition metal carbide ceramics are summarized and prospected.