Temperature measurements in the boron carbide manufacturing process - A hot model study

Boron carbide is produced in a heat resistance furnace using boric oxide and petroleum coke as the raw materials. The product yield is very low. Heat transfer plays an important role in the formation of boron carbide. Temperature at the core reaches up to 2600 K. No experimental study is available in the open literature for this high temperature process particularly in terms of temperature measurement and heat transfer. Therefore, a laboratory scale hot model of the process has been setup to measure the temperatures in harsh conditions at different locations in the furnace using various temperature measurement devices such as pyrometer and various types of thermocouple. Particular attention was paid towards the accuracy and reliability of the measured data. The recorded data were analysed to understand the heat transfer process inside the reactor and the effect of it on the formation of boron carbide.