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. 2021 Apr 26;14(9):2217.
doi: 10.3390/ma14092217.

Synthesis and Characterization of a Nearly Single Bulk Ti2AlN MAX Phase Obtained from Ti/AlN Powder Mixture through Spark Plasma Sintering

Christopher Salvo  1 , Ernesto Chicardi  2 , Rosalía Poyato  3 , Cristina García-Garrido  4 , José Antonio Jiménez  5 , Cristina López-Pernía  6 , Pablo Tobosque  7 , Ramalinga Viswanathan Mangalaraja  8
Affiliations

Synthesis and Characterization of a Nearly Single Bulk Ti2AlN MAX Phase Obtained from Ti/AlN Powder Mixture through Spark Plasma Sintering

Christopher Salvo et al. Materials (Basel). .

Abstract

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.

Keywords: MAX phase; Ti2AlN; spark plasma sintering.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
(a,b) SEM images for the Ti and AlN as-received powders, respectively; (c,d) SEM image and XRD of the Ti:AlN powder mixture, respectively.
Figure 2
Figure 2
XRD patterns of the bulk Ti2AlN MAX phase samples: (a) MAX-1200 (blue pattern) and (b) MAX-1300 (red pattern). A zoom of the XRD patterns between 2θ = 33° and 45° for (c) MAX-1200 and (d) MAX-1300.
Figure 3
Figure 3
SEM images of: (a) the outer border of the polished and non-etched MAX-1200 sample; (b) zoom of the “transition zone”; (c) the middle of the sample (showing a nearly single bulk Ti2AlN MAX phase); and (d) underdeveloped Ti2AlN. The EDS point analysis carried out revealed that the zones A, B, and C correspond to Al2O3, Ti3Al, and Ti4AlN3, respectively.
Figure 4
Figure 4
SEM images of the polished and non-etched samples with the elemental maps of the same area for the Ti (red), Al (light green), N (light blue) and O (yellow) for the (a) outer border zone of MAX-1200, (b) MAX-1200 middle zone and (c) MAX-1300 middle zone.
Figure 5
Figure 5
SEM images of the fracture surfaces for (a,b) MAX-1200 and (c,d) MAX-1300.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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