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[Display omitted] • The Aluminum borate/Zinc borate (ATH/ZB) composite powder is synthesized successfully by the mechano-chemistry technology. • The minimum inhibition concentrations of ATH, ZB and ATH/ZB for aluminum dust explosion are determined. • ATH/ZB composite powder shows superior inhibition performance in comparison with ATH and ZB. • Inhibition mechanism of ATH/ZB for aluminum dust explosion is revealed in detail. This study proved that Aluminum hydroxide (ATH)/Zinc borate (ZB) composite powder could be adopted as excellent inhibitor for aluminum dust explosion, which was successfully synthesized by mechano-chemistry technology. Under the actions of collision, friction and combination forces, the surface energies of ATH and ZB particles were activated, leading to the close compounding of ATH/ZB. The inhibition effect of ATH/ZB on aluminum dust explosion was studied experimentally. Results showed that flame propagation behaviors and velocities were inhibited accordingly as the concentrations of inhibitors increased. Moreover, the minimum inhibition concentrations of ATH, ZB and ATH/ZB were determined, corresponding to 1000 g/m3, 1000 g/m3 and 600 g/m3, indicating that ATH/ZB had superior inhibition performance compared with ATH or ZB. Characterization tests were used to analyze the explosion residues. The inhibition mechanism of ATH/ZB for aluminum dust explosion primarily included three aspects: physical coating effect, heat absorbing effect and gas dilution effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]