Abstract
Using a 2.45 GHz, 6 kW microwave furnace adapted for inert gas sintering, titanium diboride (TiB2) can be rapidly microwave-sintered to >90% of theoretical density with sintering temperatures of 1900 to 2100 °C and soak times of 30 min or less. Densification behaviour with low-level additives was evaluated; 3 wt% chromium diboride (CrB2) was an excellent sintering aid-grain growth inhibitor. A special covering system was required to produce oxidefree TiB2. Specimen surface and interior temperatures were determined with a “hole experiment”. Comparison with conventional sintering indicates that microwave sintering of TiB2-3 wt% CrB2 occurs at lower temperatures (i.e., 200 °C lower) and can yield material with improved hardness, grain size, and fracture toughness.
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Operated for the U.S. Department of Energy by Martin Marietta Energy Systems, Inc., under contract DE-AC05-84OR21400.
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Holcombe, C.E., Dykes, N.L. Microwave sintering of titanium diboride. J Mater Sci 26, 3730–3738 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01184963
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01184963