A Novel TiB₂–SiC Composite Doped with Diamond Nanoparticles: Densification, Microstructure, and Thermal Properties

This study has investigated the densification behavior, microstructure, phase formation and thermal properties of a novel TiB₂–SiC composite doped with 2 wt.% diamond (D) nanoparticles. Spark plasma sintering (SPS) has been used to fabricate the mentioned nanocomposite. The selected SPS temperature, time and pressure were 1800°C, 7 min and 40 MPa, respectively. The TiB₂–SiC–D composite showed higher relative density (~ 96%) than the TiB₂–SiC sample (~ 95.5%). The SEM images and XRD pattern showed unremarkable decomposition of diamond nanoparticles. Higher thermal diffusivity and thermal conductivity were obtained by adding diamond nanoparticles measured by laser flash method and further calculation, respectively. Greater conductivity of TiB₂–SiC–D nanocomposite could be related to the higher degrees of densification and isotropic thermal behavior of diamond nanoparticles.