Published online by Cambridge University Press: 22 February 2011
The role of boron and carbon during densification of sintered β-SiC was investigated through the combined approach of in-situ dilatometry and CTEM/AEM inspection of TEM-foils referring to well-defined densification events. Preliminary data obtained indicate that in the early stages of densification, boron is not enriched in the continuous carbon-rich surface layer covering the β-SiC powder particles nor does it segregate to internal interfaces in high quantities. Small boron quantities are dissolved in the SiC grains- Simultaneously with the β- to α- phase transformation, decomposition of foam-like B4C aggregates releases small B4C particles, which are bound intragranularly to α-SiC.