Kinetics of high-temperature oxidation of boron carbide in oxygen

Thermogravimetry and gas-adsorption chromatography were used to study the kinetics of formation of solid and gaseous products during the hightemperature oxidation of compact boron carbide in oxygen at 740 Torr. Oxidation resistance was observed at temperatures up to 1200°C. The main oxidation products were B₂O₃ and CO₂. Oxidation was paralinear; the carbon consumption exceeded the consumption of boron as compared to the ratio of these elements in the compound B₄C. This difference resulted in carbon depletion of the carbide layer in the substrate near the scale>.