Tantalum carbide

Chembox new
Name = Tantalum carbide
ImageFile = Tantalum_carbide.jpg
ImageName = Tantalum carbide
OtherNames = tantalum (IV) carbide
Section1 = Chembox Identifiers
CASNo = 12070-06-3
Section2 = Chembox Properties
Formula = TaC
MolarMass = 192.959 g/mol
Appearance = black-gray odorless powder
Density = 13.9 g/cm³, solid
Solubility = insoluble
MeltingPt = 3880°C
BoilingPt = 5500°C
Section7 = Chembox Hazards
EUClass = not listed
ExternalMSDS = [http://www.espimetals.com/msds's/tantalumcarbide.pdf External MSDS]

Tantalum carbide (TaC) is an extremely hard (Mohs hardess 9-10) refractory ceramic material, commercially used in tool bits for cutting tools. The hardness even exceeds that of diamond ["Nature's Building Blocks ANA-Z guide to the elements, ' J. Emsley, 2001, ISBN 0-19-850340-7, p. 421] . It is a heavy, brown powder usually processed by sintering, and an important cermet material. It is sometimes used as a fine-crystalline additive to tungsten carbide alloys. Tantalum carbide has the distinction of being the stoichiometric binary compound with the highest known melting point, at 4150 K (3880°C) ["CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 85th Edition", 2004, ISBN 0-8493-0485-7] . The substoichiometric compound TaC_0.89 has a higher melting point, near 4270 K (4000°C) ["The Inorganic Chemistry of Materials: How to Make Things Out Of Elements", P.J. van der Put, 1998, ISBN 0306457318, p. 129] .

When used as a mould coating, it produces a low friction surface.

Tantalum carbide-graphite composite material, developed in Los Alamos National Laboratory, is one of the hardest materials ever synthesized.

Dusts from grinding can be flammable.

Substances to avoid are: flammable gases (dust may form explosive mixtures with gases)

ee also

* niobium carbide.

References