Home >> Science & Nature >> Rocks & Minerals

The Common Use of Silicon Carbide

Silicon carbide is a compound of the two elements silicon and carbon. Also known as "carborundrum," it normally is created industrially in powder form, but it also occurs rarely in nature as the mineral mossanite, which hardens into gemstones that are sometimes cut for jewelry. Silicon carbide is very tough, highly heat conductive and chemically inert.

Everyday Abrasive
- In powder form, silicon carbide is used for abrasives including sandpaper and grip tape. It is thought to be the most abrasive substance available to use for industrial water jet cutting and sandblasting. Since it is very cheap, it is also used in smaller and more portable applications, such as sanders, grinders and knife sharpeners.
LEDs
- Light-emitting diodes are extremely power efficient and give off great light with relatively little heat. Silicon carbide is especially useful in the manufacture of LEDs because it can handle and dissipate the constant heat from the diode indefinitely. Silicon carbide LEDs have been superseded by gallium nitride LEDs, but this compound is still important in LED manufacture.
Telescope Mirrors
- Silicon carbide is the preferred material for the optics of space-bound telescopes due to its tensile strength and ability to resist thermal shock, as well as low weight and high polish. The process used to grow silicon carbide crystals has to be increased in scale in order to make panels of the appropriate size.
Graphene
- Graphene is produced in quantity by superheating silicon carbine to 1,100 degrees Celsius, resulting in "exfoliated" graphene. Graphene is a significant material for future electronics, allowing micro-circuitry technology to surpass the physical limitations of Moore's Law, allowing the creation of super thin and super strong displays, and replacing silicon with carbon as the backbone of electronic components.

Rocks & Minerals