tic powder is a key material for a wide range of applications due to its high wear resistance and perfect corrosion resistance. It is mainly used for diamond coating, tritium anti-coating in fusion reactors, electric contact and excavator cutter coating, etc. To improve its applications, tic must be free from impurities such as iron and sulfur. The preparation of TiC using titania rich slag is a promising method because of its abundant resource, low heat treatment temperature, and easy processing. However, the yield and quality of tic are limited by the chemistry and particle size distribution.
In this study, a self-propagating high-temperature synthesis (SPHTS) method is proposed to produce crystalline tic. The leucoxene in slag is converted into amorphous and crystalline TiC using hot tungsten or carbon monofilaments as catalysts to form the product. This method offers advantages such as good chemical uniformity, small powder size and narrow distribution, lower heat treatment temperature, and short synthesis time. However, the slag has a higher dry matter content and the production cost is high because it requires high energy consumption.
The characterization of the SPHTS-derived crystalline TiC was carried out by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and electrochemical measurements. EPMA and EDS results showed that the crystalline TiC was free from iron and other minor impurities. SEM images displayed that the crystalline tic particles were homogeneously dispersed in the copper matrix. The SPHTS-derived crystalline tic exhibited a high dislocation density and smaller grain size.
