Rapid synthesis of dense Ti3SiC2 by spark plasma sintering

Ti3SiC2 was rapidly synthesized and simultaneously consolidated from the starting mixture of Ti/Si/2TiC by spark plasma sintering (SPS). An intensive reaction leading to the formation of Ti3SiC2 occurred at the measured temperature of around 1200 °C, which is several hundreds degrees lower than that of conventional reactive hot pressing. The phase composition of the product could be tailored by adjusting the process parameters. An axisymmetric preferred orientation of the Ti3SiC2 grains with well-developed (008) planes was formed, resulting in an anisotropic hardness in respect to the textured product.