Synthesis and Characterization of a Nearly Single Bulk Ti<sub>2</sub>AlN MAX Phase Obtained from Ti/AlN Powder Mixture through Spark Plasma Sintering
Christopher Salvo,
Ernesto Chicardi,
Rosalía Poyato,
Cristina García-Garrido,
José Antonio Jiménez,
Cristina López-Pernía,
Pablo Tobosque,
Ramalinga Viswanathan Mangalaraja
Affiliations
Christopher Salvo
Departamento de Ingeniería Mecánica, Facultad de Ingeniería, Universidad del Bío-Bío, Concepción 4081112, Chile
Ernesto Chicardi
Departamento de Ingeniería y Ciencia de Materiales y del Transporte, Universidad de Sevilla, 41092 Sevilla, Spain
Rosalía Poyato
Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Sevilla (ICMSE-CSIC), 41092 Sevilla, Spain
Cristina García-Garrido
Instituto Andaluz del Patrimonio Histórico (IAPH), Camino de los Descubrimientos s/n., 41092 Sevilla, Spain
José Antonio Jiménez
Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Metalúrgicas, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CENIM-CSIC), 28040 Madrid, Spain
Cristina López-Pernía
Departamento de Física de la Materia Condensada, ICMS, CSIC-Universidad de Sevilla, 410902 Sevilla, Spain
Pablo Tobosque
Laboratorio de Películas Delgadas y Procesos Electroquímicos, Departamento de Ingeniería de Materiales, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción 4070386, Chile
Ramalinga Viswanathan Mangalaraja
Laboratorio de Nanotecnología y Cerámicos Avanzados, Departamento de Ingeniería de Materiales, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción 4070386, Chile
MAX phases are an advanced class of ceramics based on ternary carbides or nitrides that combine some of the ceramic and metallic properties, which make them potential candidate materials for many engineering applications under severe conditions. The present work reports the successful synthesis of nearly single bulk Ti2AlN MAX phase (>98% purity) through solid-state reaction and from a Ti and AlN powder mixture in a molar ratio of 2:1 as starting materials. The mixture of Ti and AlN powders was subjected to reactive spark plasma sintering (SPS) under 30 MPa at 1200 °C and 1300 °C for 10 min in a vacuum atmosphere. It was found that the massive formation of Al2O3 particles at the grain boundaries during sintering inhibits the development of the Ti2AlN MAX phase in the outer zone of the samples. The effect of sintering temperature on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the Ti2AlN MAX phase was investigated and discussed.