It has been studied the possibility to synthesize the new catalytic systems, based on a carbon carrier precipitated tungsten carbides, under the self-propagating combustion regime. For this purpose the tungsten (VI) oxide deposited on a surface of the fine-grained carbon black was reduced by magnesium under the combustion mode. Uniform structures of WC or W2C nanosized phases were observed, depending on the preparation of the initial carbon black-tungsten oxide mixtures. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.