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Boron Nitride Rod
Available Configurations
Properties common to all products in this list
| Diameter | Length |
|---|---|
| 3 mm to 32 mm | 25 mm to 205 mm |
Need custom configurations? Please contact us.
Key Features
Boron Nitride Rod (BN, hot pressed hexagonal) is the only machinable engineering material combining useful thermal conductivity with full electrical insulation and a service ceiling extending to 2500°C in inert atmosphere:
Machinable to close tolerances with standard tooling
Unlike most technical ceramics, hot-pressed hexagonal boron nitride machines readily with standard carbide tooling, allowing precision rod stock to be turned, milled, and drilled to close tolerances without the grinding operations and special tooling required for alumina, silicon carbide, or silicon nitride. This makes it the practical choice for complex, precision-formed high-temperature insulating components.
Thermal conductivity alongside full electrical insulation
Thermal conductivity of 15–50 W/m·K is substantially higher than most electrical insulators, while volume resistivity remains high across the operating temperature range. This combination (good thermal conductance with full electrical isolation) is not achievable in alumina, PTFE, or glass ceramics, and makes boron nitride rod the material of choice for thermal interface components that must also electrically isolate adjacent conductors.
Service ceiling of 950°C in air, 2500°C in inert atmosphere or vacuum
In air, oxidation limits service to approximately 950°C. In inert gas or vacuum, the thermal stability of the h-BN crystal structure extends the service ceiling to 2500°C, covering the full operating range of vacuum furnaces, plasma processing systems, and high-temperature crystal growth equipment where no other machinable insulating material survives.
Inherent solid lubricity from layered crystal structure
The layered hexagonal crystal structure gives boron nitride inherent solid lubricity analogous to graphite, without graphite’s electrical conductivity. This qualifies BN rod as a self-lubricating bearing and sliding contact element in high-temperature assemblies where liquid lubricants would decompose and metallic bearings would seize or gall.
Wide electronic bandgap of approximately 5.9 eV
The wide bandgap gives boron nitride excellent dielectric properties and makes it chemically and electronically inert, qualifying it as a substrate and support material for 2D materials synthesis and as a high-temperature dielectric reference material where both electrical isolation and chemical inertness are required.
Industrial Applications
Boron nitride rod is selected when high-temperature electrical isolation and useful thermal conductance must coexist in a machinable component, a combination no other engineering material provides:
- ✦ Machinable insulating rods for furnace components and plasma processing fixtures
- Used as precision-machined insulating rods and structural elements in furnace components, plasma processing fixtures, and high-voltage isolating supports in vacuum and controlled-atmosphere systems, where the combination of machinability to complex shapes, electrical insulation, and service temperatures beyond the reach of alumina-filled PTFE or glass ceramics is the deciding selection criterion.
- ✦ Solid-lubricant bearing elements in high-temperature assemblies
- Applied as self-lubricating bearing and sliding contact elements in high-temperature assemblies where liquid lubricants decompose and graphite’s electrical conductivity is unacceptable, exploiting the inherent lubricity of the h-BN layered crystal structure to provide sustained low-friction sliding without external lubrication.
- ✦ Thermal interface and heat-spreader inserts in semiconductor packaging
- Used as thermal interface and heat-spreader inserts in demanding semiconductor packaging applications, confirmed in h-BN thermal interface material research for high-power electronics cooling, where the combination of thermal conductivity substantially higher than polymer TIMs and full electrical isolation between die and heatsink cannot be matched by alternative insulating interface materials.
- ✦ Substrate and support material in 2D materials synthesis
- Applied as substrate and support material in 2D materials synthesis including graphene and transition metal dichalcogenide growth, where the wide bandgap, chemical inertness, atomically smooth basal plane surfaces, and lattice compatibility with graphene make h-BN the standard substrate for 2D material heterostructure fabrication.
- ✦ High-temperature dielectric studies and phonon transport research
- Used in research for high-temperature dielectric and insulation characterization studies, phonon transport and thermal conductivity investigations in hexagonal boron nitride, and as a reference machinable ceramic for high-temperature tribological and surface chemistry experiments.
Material Properties
| Element | Value |
|---|---|
| Acids - concentrated | Fair |
| Acids - dilute | Fair |
| Alkalis | Fair |
| Halogens | Poor |
| Metals | Good |
| Element | Value |
|---|---|
| Dielectric constant | 4.3 |
| Dielectric strength( kV mm⁻¹ ) | 40-200 |
| Volume resistivity( Ohmcm ) | 10¹¹-10¹⁴@25 |
| Element | Value |
|---|---|
| Apparent porosity( % ) | 2-15 |
| Density( gcm⁻³ ) | 1.9-2.2 |
| Element | Value |
|---|---|
| Sublimation point( C ) | 2600-2800 |
| Upper continuous use temperature( C ) | 950-2500 |
| Specific heat( J K⁻¹ kg⁻¹ ) | 800-2000@25°C |
| Thermal conductivity( W m⁻¹ K⁻¹ ) | 15-50@20°C |
| Coefficient of thermal expansion( x10⁻⁶ K⁻¹ ) | 1-36@20-1000°C |
| Element | Value |
|---|---|
| Tensile modulus( GPa ) | 20-35 |
| Shear strength( MPa ) | Dec-25 |
| Element | Value |
|---|---|
| Compressive strength( MPa ) | 30-120 |
Tolerances
| Diameter | +20% / -10% | |
|---|---|---|
| Length | <100mm | ±1mm |
| Length | >=100mm | +5 / -1% |