Titanium Carbide



Titanium carbide, TiC, is an extremely hard (Mohs 9-9.5) refractory ceramic material, similar to tungsten carbide.



It is commercially used in tool bits. It has the appearance of black powder with NaCl-type face centered cubic crystal structure. It is mainly used in preparation of cermets, which are frequently used to machine steel materials at high cutting speed.

It is also used as a surface coating on some titanium watches made by Citizen and marketed as Super Titanium.



The resistance to wear, corrosion and oxidation of a tungsten carbide-cobalt material can be increased by adding 6-30% of titanium carbide to tungsten carbide. This forms a solid solution that is more brittle and susceptible to breakage than the original material.



Tool bits without tungsten content can be made of titanium carbide in nickel-cobalt matrix cermet, enhancing the cutting speed, precision, and smoothness of the work piece. This material is sometimes called high-tech ceramics and is used as a heat shield for atmospheric reentry of spacecraft. The substance may be also polished and used in scratch-proof watches.

                             Formula:                       TiC

                             Purity:                           99.5% (metals basis)

                             CAS #:                          [12070-08-5]

                             Formula Weight:          59.91

                             Density:                        4.93 gm/cm³

                             Melting Point:               ~3140^oC

                             UN Number:                 UN3178                       

                             Form:                            Powder, Typically 2 microns or less