Formation reaction kinetics of nanocrystalline TiC via molten LiCl–KCl applying shrinking core model

• Published in: Ceramics international 2021-05, Vol.47 (9), p.12859-12869
• Main Authors: Nadimi, H., Sarpoolaky, H., Soltanieh, M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Kinetics; Modified Scherrer equation; Molten salt synthesis; Nanocrystalline TiC; Rietveld refinement; Shrinking core model
• ISSN: 0272-8842; 1873-3956
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ceramint.2021.01.148

In the present investigation, nanocrystalline TiC with 20 nm average size was synthesized through molten LiCl–KCl using elemental Ti and carbon black (CB) powders as starting materials. The molar ratio of CB to Ti and the weight ratio of salt to reactants were selected 2:1 and 9:1, respectively. The mixture of salt and reactants was blended for 45 min by agate mortar and then dried at 110 °C for 60 min. To better understanding the effect of heating time, four samples were synthesized from 1 to 4 h at 970 °C, and the results obtained from X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis patterns showed that the purity of samples was improved with increasing the heating time. The crystallite size of TiC powders from 1 to 4 h at 970 °C was calculated using the modified Scherrer equation and Rietveld refinement methods. Rietveld refinement showed that the crystallite size of TiC from 1 to 3 h is