Fabrication of Zr3AlC2 by Spark Plasma Sintering

This study reports the synthesis of the Zr3AlC2 MAX phase from ZrH2, Al, and ZrC as raw materials by means of spark plasma sintering (SPS). The crystal structure of the resulting product was analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), and the microstructure was examined using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). We investigated the influence of sintering temperature and process parameters on the Zr3AlC2 content within the sintered product. We also introduce a novel two-layer powder filling approach that significantly enhances the purity of Zr3AlC2 in the final product. This method leverages a specific stacking mechanism to control phase distribution, achieving a Zr3AlC2 content as high as 93%. [doi:10.2320/matertrans.MT-M2024111]