Application Of Boron Carbide

Controlling nuclear fission
Boron carbide can absorb a large number of neutrons without forming any radioactive isotopes, so it is an ideal neutron absorber in nuclear power plants, and neutron absorbers mainly control the rate of nuclear fission. Boron carbide is mainly made into controllable rods in nuclear reactors, but sometimes it is made into powder to increase the surface area.
During the Chernobyl nuclear accident in 1986, Russia dropped nearly 2,000 tons of boron carbide and sand, which eventually stopped the chain reaction in the reactor.
Abrasive materials
Because boron carbide has been used as a coarse sand abrasive material for a long time. Due to its high melting point, it is not easy to cast into artificial products, but by melting powder at high temperature, it can be processed into simple shapes. It is used for grinding, grinding, drilling and polishing of hard materials such as cemented carbide and gemstones.
Coatings
Boron carbide can also be used as a ceramic coating for warships and helicopters. It is light in weight and has the ability to resist armor-piercing projectiles from penetrating hot-pressed coatings into an integral defense layer.
Nozzles
In the arms industry, it can be used to make gun nozzles. Boron carbide is extremely hard and wear-resistant, does not react with acids and alkalis, is resistant to high/low temperatures and high pressures, has a density of ≥2.46g/cm3; microhardness ≥3500kgf/mm2, bending strength ≥400MPa, and a melting point of 2450℃.
Because of the above wear-resistant and high-hardness characteristics of boron carbide nozzles, boron carbide sandblasting nozzles will gradually replace the known sandblasting nozzles made of cemented carbide/tungsten steel and silicon carbide, silicon nitride, aluminum oxide, zirconium oxide, etc.
Others
Boron carbide is also used in the manufacture of metal borides, smelting of boron sodium, boron alloys, and special welding.