A Quantitative Study of the Synthesis of TiB2 Particles via Salts-Metal Reaction at Different Temperatures

This research quantitatively studied the effect of temperature on the synthesis of TiB2 particle reinforcement via a casing method in which a salts-metal reaction was involved. Experimental results showed that the yield of TiB2 reached 89.5 pct and most TiB2 particles ranged from 400 to 800 nm at 1173 K (900 A degrees C) with a 10-minute reaction time; when the reaction time was 30 minutes, the TiB2 particles had similar yield and size distribution. At 973 K (700 A degrees C) with a 10-minute reaction time, most TiB2 particles were less than 300 nm, whereas the yield was just 28.1 pct; as the time was prolonged to 30 minutes, some smaller-sized TiB2 particles were synthesized and the yield of TiB2 was 36.4 pct. At a higher temperature [1173 K (900 A degrees C)], the synthesis of TiB2 mainly followed the precipitation-growth process at reaction interface. At a lower temperature [973 K (700 A degrees C)], the precipitation-growth process and dissolution reaction between Al3Ti and AlB2 both contributed to the formation of TiB2.