Ti2AlC ternary carbide synthesized by thermal explosion

Ti2AlC ternary carbide was fabricated from 2Ti-Al-C powder blend employing thermal explosion (TE) mode of self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (SHS). The formation of Ti2AlC was found to occur during cooling from the high combustion temperature (>2000 degreesC) by a peritectic reaction between the earlier formed liquid Ti aluminides and a solid Ti carbide, TiC1-x. The application of a moderate 30-MPa pressure during TE at 800 degreesC yielded a near fully dense material containing, in addition to the Ti2AlC ternary phase, an appreciable amount of TiC1-x. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.