Synthesis of Al2O/SiC in microwave oven: study of the processing parameters

Results presented elsewhere have confirmed the feasibility of the previous milling process of the starting materials for the synthesis of Al2O3/SiC by the microwave-assisted carbothermal reduction. In the present work, parameters such as precursor milling, reaction time, microwave's power level and gas flow have been investigated. Reactions were carried out in a semi-industrial microwave oven (Cober Inc., USA), which allowed the inert gas insertion. Two reactions arrangement were developed to perform the synthesis: a cylindrical reactor thermally insulated and a pipe fluidized bed reactor Into both reactors, the precursor was applied in a palletized form to react. There is a direct relation between the reaction atmosphere saturation and the kinetics of the carbothermal reduction. This behavior in addiction to high power levels of microwave radiation ( > 1.5 KW), favors the formation ofAl2O3/SiC in a short time.