Silica to Silicon: Key Carbothermic Reactions and Kinetics

The primary carbothermic reactions for the reduction of silica to produce silicon were defined and the reaction kinetics were determined. Most possible reactions between silicon oxide and carbon or carbon compounds were studied by a series of thermogravimetric analyses at temperatures up to 2000°C. Four key sequential reactions occur with SiC and SiO as intermediate reactants; two reactions involve SiO₂ and two involve SiO. Reaction rate versus temperature, activation energy, and preexponential factors were determined for each of six reactions involving SiO₂ or SiO. These kinetic studies show that SiO, when combined with either carbon or Sic, reacts in the gaseous state, and the sublimation of SiO is not the rate-limiting reaction for forming silicon.     

On the oxidation kinetics and mechanisms of various SiC-coated carbon-carbon composites

SiC coatings on the surface of C-C were produced by either silicone resin impregnation/ pyrolysis or reaction sintering. Cycles of resin impregnation/pyrolysis produced an SiC coating, on the walls of fine open pores, which was effective in reducing the oxidation rate of C-C and in shifting the transition temperature to a higher value. Unless it is pre-coated with a pyrocarbon layer before sintering, plain reaction sintered SiC has oxidation behaviors similar to those of the above-mentioned SiC. The dense pyrocarbon film deposition on the surface of C-C could form a better SiC film than others. The carbon film homogenized the surface of C-C and a dense SiC film was established. The oxidation of the coated C-C can be modelled by a set of “oxidation resistors” in series and/or in parallel, with each resistor corresponding to an oxidation element. The controlling mechanism can be resolved from the activation energy. A combined resistant layer, consisting of resin impregnation, pyrocarbon film and reaction sintering SiC, showed the best oxidation resistance of any single-layer coated C-C composite.     

Thermal expansion of an SiC particle-reinforced aluminum composite

Using a push-rod dilatometer, we measured between 76 and 390 K the thermal expansion of a particle-reinforced-composite wrought plate obtained by powdermetallurgy methods. The particles, 30% by volume, consisted of monocrystals of -SiC with sizes near 10 m. The matrix consisted of a 6061 aluminum alloy with original particle sizes near 20 m. We found the perpendicular thermal expansivity, ₃, higher by 26% than the in-plane thermal expansivity, ₁-₂. These values differ from a rule-of-mixture prediction by –3 and –23%, respectively. All three _i, components lie outside the Rosen-Hashin bounds. Levin's isotropic model agrees within 10% with the ₁-₂-₃ average. Both the anisotropy and the bounds violation result from microstructural nonhomogeneity arising from processing. Rosen and Hashin's transverse-isotropicsymmetry relationships account approximately for these effects by introducing the anisotropic elastic constants. Using neutron diffraction, we determined that the SiC particles are textureless.Paper presented at the Tenth International Thermal Expansion Symposium, June 6–7, 1989, Boulder, Colorado, U.S.A.     

Intergranular oxidation of silicon in 20Cr-25Ni niobium-stabilized stainless steel at 1140–1230 K

The kinetics of intergranular oxidation of silicon in a 20Cr-25Ni Nb-stabilized stainless steel are reported, at temperatures in the range 1140–1230 K, in CO₂ at 40 bar pressure. The depth of attack increased parabolically with respect to time, with an activation energy of 335±30 kJ/mol. The mechanism of growth is discussed in terms of classical internal-oxidation theories, and an alternative explanation based on an available-space theory is developed. The internal oxidation rates in a number of different alloys are compared with diffusivities of metals in the base alloy. It is proposed that intergranular oxidation in the 20–25 Nb steel is controlled by the rate of outward diffusion of iron or chromium in the alloy.     

Evolution of insoluble eutectic Si particles in anodic oxidation films during adipic-sulfuric acid anodizing processes of ZL114A aluminum alloys

The effects of insoluble eutectic Si particles on the growth of anodic oxide films on ZL114A aluminum alloy substrates were in-vestigated by optical microscopy (OM) and scanning electron microscopy (SE...     

Recent progress of CERN RD50 Collaboration

The objective of the CERN RD50 Collaboration is to develop radiation hard semiconductor detectors for very high luminosity colliders, in particular, for the upgrade of the large hadron collider （LHC） which itself is scheduled to be operational in 2007. The approach of the RD50 has two major research lines, material engineering and device engineering. These are further subdivided into projects covering defect characterization and engineering, new detector materials, detector characterization, new detector structures and full detector systems. Presently, 264 members from 53 institutes are actively participating in the RD50 Collaboration. Detectors made of defect engineered substrates, e.g. high resistivity magnetic Czochralski （MCz-Si）, epitaxial silicon （Epi-Si） on Czochralski silicon （Cz-Si） substrate, intentionally thermal donor （TD） compensated p-type MCz-Si and oxygen enriched （DOFZ） silicon, have been demonstrated by the RD50 Collaboration. An overview and highlights of the results of these defect engineering techniques were given in this report.     

High-temperature oxidation of SiC in a glow-discharge oxygen plasma

The oxidation kinetics and structure of the oxide scales formed on high-density SiC were studied in molecular oxygen at 740 Torr and in a glow-discharge oxygen plasma at 0.1 Torr at temperatures of 1000, 1100, and 1200°C. The monatomic oxygen formed by the glow discharge markedly increased the reaction rate and the vaporization of some of the oxidation products. The marked differences in kinetics suggest that the rate-controlling step during oxidation in molecular oxygen is the dissociation of adsorbed diatomic oxygen to the monatomic species. Films formed in molecular oxygen were mostly amorphous SiO₂ with small inclusions of SiC and graphite, whereas films formed in dissociated oxygen were primarily amorphous SiO₂ containing SiO, S₂O₃, and the coesite form of SiO₂.     

初探混联法生产氧化铝的工艺优化

在目前的生产条件下。通过大量的混联法物料衡算，定量地研究了供矿铝硅比、熟料铝硅比和拜年法赤泥铝硅比对混联法的制造成本、能耗和拜年法与烧结法的生产比例的影响规律，提出我国混联法生产进一步优化的方向和途径。并开发了研究和评价的计算软件。为混联法的生产和设计的进一步优化奠定基础。     

多孔硅相对湿度传感器的设计

基于对三明治型与平铺型两种多孔硅湿度传感器结构的灵敏度分析与比较,结合两种结构的优点,设计出新的传感器的结构。通过对该结构湿度传感器的性能测试,得出该传感器的灵敏度为1.1 pF/RH%,响应时间为73 s,温度湿度系数为0.5%RH/℃,该湿度传感器适用于在中低湿环境中测量,在每隔20 d的时间对传感器跟踪测试,证明该传感具有较好的稳定性。此外为了传感器可以自解吸附,该传感器采用多晶硅为传感器加热除湿,在金属电极上溅射一层钝化层以防止电极被水汽腐蚀。