Using the method of self-propagating high-temperature synthesis, NUSTMISIS scientists created HfC0.5N0.35, (hafnium carbonitride) which is close to a desired theoretical composition. It has a high hardness of 21.3 GPa and can withstand temperatures over 4000 degrees celsius.
The hardness is higher than in other promising materials, such as ZrB2/SiC (20.9 GPa) and HfB2/SiC/TaSi2 (18.1 GPa).
Brown University (U.S.) had previously predicted that hafnium carbonitride would have a high thermal conductivity and resistance to oxidation, as well as the highest melting point among all known compounds (approximately 4200 degrees C).
The specific melting point of the new material is above 4000 degrees C, and could not be determined precisely in the laboratory. In the future, the team plans to conduct experiments on measuring the melting temperature by high-temperature pyrometry using a laser or electric resistance. They also plan to study the performance of the resulting hafnium carbonitride in hypersonic conditions, which will be relevant for further application in the aerospace industry.
Nonstoichiometric hafnium carbonitrides (HfCxNy) was fabricated via short-term (5 min) high-energy ball milling of Hf and C powders, followed by combustion of mechanically induced Hf/C composite particles in a nitrogen atmosphere (0.8 MPa). The obtained HfC0.5N0.35 powder exhibited a rock-salt crystal structure with a lattice parameter of 0.4606 nm. The melting point of this synthesized ceramic material was experimentally shown to be higher than that of binary hafnium carbide (HfC). The nonstoichiometric hafnium carbonitride was then consolidated under a constant pressure of 50 MPa at a temperature of 2000 °C and a dwelling time of 10 min, through spark plasma sintering. The obtained bulk ceramic material had a theoretical material density of 98%, Vickers hardness of 21.3 GPa, and fracture toughness of 4.7 MPa m1/2
SOURCES- Phys Org, Ceramics International
Written By Brian Wang, Nextbigfuture.com

Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
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Mr.Wang is so shy to say that “they” is the team of Russian scientists. Perfect journalism )))
“Han… Time for a Carbonite Ride” Carbonitride
Mine are reactors
The virus isnt, it’s the government shutdown that should not be happening that is hurting the economy.
still it is affecting the economy quite badly
Turbines are for Brayton Cycle engines. The Fickett-Jacobs Cycle dispenses with such items, which limit the operating temperature of current propulsion engines.
It’s a scientific paper, not a state secret. It’s assured someone somewhere will attempt to recreate the experiment/process.
Every time I read about a new high temperature material, only one thing crosses my mind; new aerospace applications.
Read the small print: made in Russia, funded by Kremlin. So, calm down everyone – it is probably going into RVs. No, the other RVs.
But the toughness seems to be that of a run-of-the-mill ceramic [1]. I don’t know how much toughness is needed for a jet engine blade coating (I assume that you cannot make the blades of solid ceramics).
(1) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fracture_toughness
Good to see an article that’s entirely in metric measurements.
Sounds like a good candidate for a next gen jet engine.