Hydrolysis behavior of zirconium diboride during attrition milling

► The surface was mainly covered of Zr-O, B-O and B-OH bonds after hydrolysis. ► ZrB2 powder tended to behave like a B2O3-modified surface by milling treatment. ► The surface B/Zr atomic ratio decreased from water to ethanol medium. ► The nano-sized oxide layer (∼5 nm) was observed and helped to improve the dispersion of ZrB2 particles in dilute aqueous media.