Synthesis and Compaction of Al-based Nanopowders by Pulsed Discharge Method

Abstract

Synthesis and compaction of Al-base nano powders by pulsed discharge method were investigated. The aluminum based powders with 50 to 200 nm of diameter were produced by pulsed wire evaporation method. The powders were covered with very thin oxide layer. The perspective process for the compaction and sintering of nanostructured metal-based materials stable in a wide temperature range can be seen in the densification of nano-sized metal powders with uniformly distributed hard ceramic particles. The promising approach lies in utilization of natural uniform mixtures of metal and ceramic phases, e.g. partially oxidized metal powders as fabricated in our synthesis method. Their particles consist of metal grains coated with oxide films. To construct a metal-matrix material from such powder, it is necessary to destroy the hard oxide coatings of particles during the compaction process. This goal was realized in our experiments with intensive magnetic pulsed compaction of aluminum nanopowders passivated in air.