Synthesis of Ti₃SiC₂-Bicarbide Based Ceramic by Electro-Thermal Explosion

Abstract

A polycrystalline dense Ti 3 SiC 2 based ceramic material has been produced by several techniques. The effect of addition of TiC and SiC is also studied. The T i 3 SiC 2 material shows extraordinary electrical, thermal and mechanical properties. Furthermore, it shows a damage tolerance capability and oxidation resistance. In this work, we have synthesized Ti 3 SiC 2 by electro-thermal explosion chemical reaction (ETE) with high current density (900 Amperes/a.u) followed by uniaxial pressure. The structural properties of the as-prepared materials are studied by x-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDX) techniques. The chemical cartography, imaging and electronic properties are investigated using Ultra-STEM and electron high energy loss resolution spectroscopy (EELS) techniques, respectively. The surface of Ti 3 SiC 2 is characterized by means of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). High resolution C 1s, Si 2p, Ti 2p, Ti 3s core level spectra are explained in terms of crystallographic and electronic structure. Valence band spectrum is performed to confirm the validity of the theoretical calculations.