Fabrication of Reaction-Bonded Boron Carbide-Based Composites by Binder Jetting 3D Printing

In this work, the binder jetting 3D printing of boron carbide was combined with a subsequent liquid silicon infiltration procedure to produce reaction-bonded boron carbide (RBBC)-based structures. After printing, the samples were isostatically pressed to obtain more homogeneous and denser microstructures while maintaining their complex shapes. The RBBC bodies were successfully fabricated, and the influence of the binder content on the amount of residual silicon was studied. By increasing the binder content from 10 to 22.5 vol.%, the Si content decreased from ~28 to ~12 vol.%. The mechanical properties dependent on the Si content were additionally investigated. The measured average values for the bending strength (~355 MPa), Young’s modulus (~348 GPa), and hardness (~20 GPa) are comparable to those reported in the literature for RBBC-based materials.