A SiC based sinterable powder mixture comprising, by dried weight of said powder: a) a mineral content comprising—silicon carbide (SiC) particles, —mineral boron compound particles, the powder comprising at least 50% by weight of SiC and the total mineral content of the powder being at least 90% by weight, b) at least a water insoluble carbon-containing source, in particular a carbon containing resin, the powder comprising at least 1% by weight, and preferably less than 10% by weight, of said water insoluble carbon-containing source, wherein the average particle size of said sinterable powder is comprised between 0.5 to 2.0 micrometers.

A method of making a ceramic composite component includes providing a fibrous preform or a plurality of fibers, providing a first plurality of particles, coating the first plurality of particles with a coating to produce a first plurality of coated particles, delivering the first plurality of coated particles to the fibrous preform or to an outer surface of the plurality of fibers, and converting the first plurality of coated particles into refractory compounds. The first plurality of particles or the coating comprises a refractory metal.

A superhard material-containing object is configured to have a controlled and repeatable three-dimensional geometry and/or shape. The object further includes a desired three-dimensional spatial variation in microstructure, grain size and/or composition. The superhard material is selected from the group consisting of diamond, boron-doped diamond and cubic boron nitride. A process for production of a superhard material-containing object from a powder of a superhard material, a binder and an optional additive, includes the steps of: (a) producing a feedstock of the superhard material and a polymer binder; (b) extruding one or more filaments from a granulated superhard material-binder feedstock; (c) preparing a printed superhard material-containing object using the one or more filaments; (d) subjecting the printed object to debinding to prepare a debindered object; and (e) sintering the debindered printed object to produce the superhard material-containing object.

A method for making a ceramic matrix composite component includes densifying a fibrous preform of the component with a ceramic matrix to form an intermediate component; infiltrating a hole in the intermediate component with an infiltrate material comprising a solid and a metallic alloy whose reaction forms a carbide, silicide, boride or combination thereof, heating the infiltrate material to a temperature in excess of a melting point of the metallic alloy; and sequentially cooling regions of the hole starting from an interior end of the hole to the outer surface of the intermediate component to form a solidified through-thickness reinforcement element. The hole extends in a through-thickness direction and is open to an exterior surface of the intermediate component.

A negative electrode active material including a silicon-carbon-based particle, the silicon-carbon-based particle having a SiC.sub.x matrix and boron doped in the SiC.sub.x matrix, wherein x of the SiC.sub.x matrix is 0.3 or more and less than 0.6.

A method for producing a hollow part made of a ceramic matrix composite material. The method includes shaping a hollow fibrous preform. A core of oxidizable material is housed or inserted into the preform. The method also includes consolidating the preform and extracting the core by oxidising the core.

A preform for making a component of a braking system having a fibre-reinforced ceramic composite material, obtained by forming and subsequent pyrolysis of a pre-preg is described. Also described is a component of a braking system made wholly or in part from the preform, and a method for making a preform in a fibre-reinforced ceramic composite material.

A fiber comprises a bulk material comprising: one or more of carbon, silicon, boron, silicon carbide, and boron nitride; and a metal or metal alloy whose affinity for oxygen is greater than that of the bulk material. At least a first portion of the metal or metal alloy is present at the entrance to grain boundaries at the surface of the fiber and within the fiber to a depth of at least 1 micron from the fiber surface. A method of improving a fiber comprises heating a fiber in an inert atmosphere to 900-1300 C for sufficient time to allow at least some of a metal or metal alloy, placed on the fiber, to diffuse and/or flow into and along grain boundaries to a depth of at least 1 micron. The metal or metal alloy has a greater affinity for oxygen than that of the fiber bulk material.

A metal boride aerogel includes a three-dimensional aerogel structure comprising metal boride particles having an average diameter of less than one micron. A method is disclosed for forming a metal boride aerogel including dispersing boron nanoparticles in a solution of a metal salt, forming a boron-loaded metal oxide precursor gel using the dispersed boron nanoparticles in the solution of the metal salt, drying the boron-loaded metal oxide precursor gel to form a boron-loaded metal oxide precursor aerogel, and heating the boron-loaded metal oxide precursor aerogel to form a metal boride aerogel. The metal boride aerogel is essentially free of metal oxide.

A method of producing, from a continuous or discontinuous (e.g., chopped) carbon fiber, partially to fully converted metal carbide fibers. The method comprises reacting a carbon fiber material with at least one of a metal or metal oxide source material at a temperature greater than a melting temperature of the metal or metal oxide source material (e.g., where practical, at a temperature greater than the vaporization temperature of the metal or metal oxide source material). Additional methods, various forms of carbon fiber, metal carbide fibers, and articles including the metal carbide fibers are also disclosed.