A novel approach to accelerate the reaction between Ti and Al

•This paper describes a novel approach to accelerate the reaction between Ti and Al.•SiC particle was introduced into the original Al foils to refine TiAl3 grain size.•Refinement mechanisms were concluded from the perspective of nucleation.•The introduction of SiC particles indeed accelerated the reaction between Ti and Al.•The laws in this work are widely suitable in Ti/Al, Ni/Al and Fe/Al system. Pure Ti foils and SiCp/Al composite foils were employed to investigate the parabolic growth kinetics of TiAl3 at 660°C. Compared with pure Al foils, the introduction of SiC particles significantly refined TiAl3 grain size by the solid solution of silicon. Corresponding refinement mechanisms were concluded from the perspective of the nucleation of TiAl3. Micromechanics analysis shows that the fine TiAl3 grains own a small viscous resistance, and subsequently an improvement in the reaction rate could be achieved. This meaningful law also applies extensively to Ni/Al and Fe/Al systems.