Research Progress on the Ultra-High Pressure Preparation of Typical Transition Metal Carbides (Group ⅣB −ⅥB)

Transition metal carbides (TMCs) exhibit exceptional properties, including high hardness, high melting point, excellent electrical conductivity, and corrosion resistance, making them promising candidates for extreme environments such as aerospace and cutting tools. However, the strong covalent bonding and low diffusion coefficients inherent to TMCs necessitate extremely high sintering temperatures, posing significant challenges for fabricating dense bulk ceramics with superior properties. The high pressure and high temperature (HPHT) sintering technique offers distinct advantages, effectively lowering sintering temperatures, reducing processing times, suppressing grain growth, enhancing densification, and preserving phase purity. This review summarizes recent advances in the HPHT synthesis, mechanical properties, and underlying mechanisms of several typical TMCs (Groups ⅣB to ⅥB). The application prospects and future research directions for TMC ceramics are also discussed and outlined.