A Brief Introduction to Silicon Carbide

The diamond grit powder, also known as silicon carbide (SiC), is smelted by high-temperature resistance furnaces using raw materials such as quartz sand, petroleum coke (or coal coke), and wood chips (salt is needed in the production of green silicon carbide). Silicon carbide also exists in nature as a rare mineral, moissanite.

Among contemporary non-oxide high-tech refractory raw materials such as C, N, B, silicon carbide is the most widely used and economical one, which can be called gold steel sand or refractory sand. At present, silicon carbide produced by China's industry is divided into black silicon carbide and green silicon carbide, both of which are hexagonal crystals with a specific gravity of 3.20 to 3.25 and a microhardness of 2840 to 3320 kg / m㎡.

Because of its stable chemical properties, high thermal conductivity, small thermal expansion coefficient, and good abrasion resistance, diamond grit powder has many other uses besides abrasives. For example, the emery powder is coated on the inner wall of the turbine impeller or cylinder block with a special process, which can improve its wear resistance and extend its service life by 1 to 2 times. Diamond powder can be made into high-grade refractory materials, which are heat-resistant, small, light in weight and high in strength, and have good energy-saving effects. Low-grade silicon carbide (containing about 85% of SiC) is an excellent deoxidizer. It can accelerate the speed of steelmaking, facilitate the control of chemical composition, and improve the quality of steel. In addition, silicon carbide is also widely used in the manufacture of silicon carbide rods for electric heating elements.