Synthesis and Characterization of SiC/MC/C Ceramics (M = Ti, Zr, Hf) Starting from Totally Non-oxidic Precursors

The reaction of poly(dimethylsilane) (PDMS) and poly(dimethylcarbosilane) (PCS) with bis(cyclopentadienyl)M dichloride Cp2MCl2 (M = Ti, Zr, Hf) complexes has been used as a new route to obtain ceramic materials based on SiC-containing M. The reaction is completed at a relatively low temperature, 900 °C, yielding the corresponding amorphous SiC/MC ceramics which have been characterized by means of 29Si MAS NMR. These amorphous materials have been treated at higher temperatures, 1350 °C, under a purified argon atmosphere, yielding partially crystallized products which have been studied by X-ray powder diffraction and 29Si MAS NMR. The effect of the composition of the mixture of precursors is also studied in this work.