Regression analysis of material properties and hardness of dense boron carbide

Abstract Material properties directly affect the final performance of the produced articles. This study aims to establish a correlation between materials properties and hardness of boron carbide samples. Ten different boron carbide powders were sintered to high densities by spark plasma sintering, and material properties (grain size, density, stoichiometry, and free carbon) were analyzed. Hardness tests were conducted on these samples. All experimental procedures were completed by a single operator, and the same instruments were used for all the samples. Multiple linear regressions using the ordinary least squares method in SPSS were carried out to identify the relationship between hardness and material properties. Analyses showed density is the most dominant property, surpassing any other parameter. Grain size became more dominant at higher densities (>99%) and affected hardness results. Both grain size and density are the result of the starting powder and the densification procedure. This study showed that 80% of the hardness variation can be explained by this model.