Boron carbide ceramic hollow microspheres prepared from poly(6-CH2CH(CH2)4-B10H13) precursor

• Poly(6-hexenyldecaborane)s were synthesized by polymerization of 6-CH2CH(CH2)4-B10H13 with different catalysts.
• Linear poly(6-hexenyldecaborane) was used to prepare hollow microspheres due to higher softening point and ceramic yield.
• Boron carbide hollow microspheres had an average outer diameter of 1.0 mm and shell thickness from 15 to 30 μm.
• The ceramic hollow microspheres with good sphericity have wide application in encapsulation of nuclear fusion materials.

Millimeter-sized boron carbide ceramic hollow microspheres have promising practical application in the encapsulation of nuclear fusion materials in the field of inertial confinement fusion. However, the fabrication of millimeter-sized compact boron carbide ceramic hollow microspheres from poly(6-hexenyldecaborane) precursor has not been reported yet. In this work, poly(6-hexenyldecaborane)s with decaborane in the main chain and the branched chain, respectively, were synthesized using 6-CH2CH(CH2)4-B10H13 as the monomer. Furthermore, compact boron carbide ceramic hollow microspheres were fabricated by the combination of emulsification-solvent evaporation technique and precursor derived method. With smooth surface and good sphericity, the hollow ceramic microspheres had an average outer diameter of 1.0 mm and shell thickness ranging from 15 to 30 μm.

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