Fine metal carbide particles and methods of manufacturing the same

Abstract

There is provided fine metal carbide particles which do not require pulverization of an initial material, a reaction intermediate and a product that causes the contamination with metallic impurities, which can promote a carbonization reaction uniformly at a lower temperature than in the past, and which can be manufactured at a low cost; and a method of manufacturing the same. The fine metal carbide particles are prepared by heat-treating, in a nonoxidizing atmosphere or a vacuum atmosphere, a solid obtained by drying an aqueous metal complex solution containing a water-soluble metal compound, and a low-molecular-weight water-soluble organic compound having one or more functional group(s) selected from the group consisting of amino group, hydroxyl group and carboxyl group, and having at least one of oxygen and nitrogen as heteroatom(s). In the fine metal carbide particles, the average particle diameter is 100 nm or less, the content of iron as impurities is 100 ppm or less, and the ratio of the total carbon amount is within ±0.3 wt % around a theoretical ratio of the total carbon amount calculated from the composition of the metal carbide.