Preparation of Al2O3-TiC composite powder by SHS process

The raw materials used in this study were powders of TiO(2) (the average particle size of approximate 25 mum, purity > 98.8%), aluminum powder (the average particle size of approximate 15 mum, purity > 98.8%), and graphite (the average particle size of approximate 25 mum, purity > 98.8%). The raw materials were mixed in ethanol for 24 h according to the molar ratio TiO(2): Al : C = 3 : 4.2 : 2.8, filtered, dried and sifted. The mixed powder was located in a SHS reactor and preheated to about 400degreesC under argon environment, and ignited by a tungsten wire. The product powder was analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) to determine the phase composition and by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) to determine its microstructure.