Simultaneous Synthesis and Densification of Titanium Nitride/ Titanium Diboride Composites by High Nitrogen Pressure Combustion

Abstract

Composites of TiN/TiB 2 were synthesized by a combustion process of BN, Ti in a nitrogen atmosphere. The effect of the BN/Ti ratio and the nitrogen gas pressure on the synthesis of these composites was investigated. Dense TiN/TiB 2 composites with relatively high hardness and toughness were fabricated by combustion synthesis from Ti and BN under a nitrogen pressure of 4.0 MPa. The Vickers microhardness of the products obtained from reactants with a BN/Ti mole ratio of 0.11 increased with an increase in nitrogen pressure and had a maximum value of ∼25 GPa. Fracture toughness, K IC , of the products increased from 3.1 to 5.9 MPa·m 1/2 as the BN/Ti ratio increased from 0.11 to 0.20. However, products formed under nitrogen pressures higher than 6.0 MPa exhibited circumferential macrocracks due to thermal shock.