Features of cubic Ni3C and NiC carbides obtained by HT-HP sintering

In this work NiC carbides were manufactured by HP-HT sintering of mechanically alloyed charges of the elemental Ni–carbon nanotubes (CNT) or Ni–Graphite. Structural features of the materials obtained were characterized by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. X-ray diffraction studies have revealed that the crystal lattice of nickel carbide obtained from mechanically alloyed Ni–CNT charge is supplemented with additional Carbon atoms from the graphite shell of the high-pressure cell at HT-HP sintering. On the other hand, nickel carbide fabricated from mechanically alloyed Ni–Graphite charge retains its composition. It is shown that materials studied in this work demonstrate an advanced value of microhardness (up to 7 GPa).