Aug. 7, 2015

Researchers at Space Transportation System Department of Iran's Space Research Center succeeded in the laboratorial production of ceramic nanofibers made of cheap and biocompatible raw materials with very high melting point.Today, there is a need for a type of material that is resistant to temperatures higher than 2,000°C for a long time in addition to having the ability to work at oxide and corrosive atmospheres in the production of thermal shields, cutting devices, turbines, melting bushes and storage of molten metals.
Nanofibers have advantages over nanoparticles, including perfect resistance to severe thermal shock, higher ability to endure dynamic load, and higher fracture toughness. Therefore, the researchers tried to synthesize zirconium diboride as a high temperature ceramic with nanofibrous structure.
There are different methods to synthesize zirconium diboride such as solid-state reaction, electrochemical reaction and mechanical methods. However, there are some problems in the production of these materials, including high temperature of synthesis, long production time, low purity and relatively large particle size.
In this research, zirconium diboride nanofibers were synthesized by using a gel containing raw materials and molecular dimensions and by electrospinning of the produced sol through carbothermal reduction. Cheap and eco-friendly raw materials have been used in the production of the nanofibers. The application of cheap precursors without the need for pre-preparation and reducing the temperature of thermal processing decrease the cost and pollution during the synthesis.