Preparation of submicron Al-Ti Alloy particles by mechanical alloying

Abstract

Introduction: Mechanical alloying (MA) is a solid-state powder processing technique involving repeated welding, fracturing and re-welding of powder particles in a high-energy ball mill [1-3]. MA has been used to synthesize equilibrium and non-equilibrium phases using elementary or pre-alloyed powder [4]. The advantages of using mechanical alloying for synthesis of crystalline materials are because of its simplicity, cost effectiveness, room temperature synthesis process, and capability of production on industrial scale [5-6]. A process control agent (PCA) is generally added to powder mixture during milling when the powder mixing involves a substantial fraction of a ductile component. PCAs are used to avoid adhesion of the powder to the ball and vials during MA processing. Mostly organic compounds, such as stearic acid, oxalic acid, hexane, ethanol and methanol are used as PCAs [6]. Among them, stearic acid is one of the most effective and very often used as a PCA. In this paper, it is reported the used of mechanical alloying process and stearic acid to prepare submicron of Al-Ti alloy particles.