Ablation resistance of Ti2AlC ceramics at 1600 °C in nitrogen plasma flame

Abstract

In this study, the ablation behaviors of high-purity and dense Ti2AlC ceramics were investigated using a nitrogen plasma flame at 1600 °C. The macromorphology, microstructure, and phase compositions of the Ti2AlC ceramics were systematically investigated at ablation times of 60–180 s. At the longest ablation time of 180 s, the linear ablation rate and mass ablation rate are 3.09 μm/s and −0.473 mg/s, respectively, which indicate noteworthy ablation resistance. The ablated cross-sections of the samples can be classified into three layers: a surface oxide layer, transition decomposition layer, and matrix layer. The surface oxide layers formed at different ablation times are composed of Al2TiO5 and TiO2, and the transition decomposition layer comprises mainly TiC and Al2O3 with pores and cracks. The high ablation resistance of the Ti2AlC ceramics is primarily due to the formation of the surface oxide layer, which effectively prevents oxidation and plasma flow erosion.