Synthesis and Morphological Analysis of Titanium Carbide Nanopowder

Abstract

One of the major challenges in the development of nanostructured/ultrafine non-oxide ceramics is the synthesis of non-agglomerated nanosized ceramic powders. Here, we investigate carbothermal reduction to obtain spherical titanium carbide (TiC) nanoparticles smaller than 100 nm in diameter. Using a combination of characterization techniques, it has been confirmed that optimum thermal reduction conditions include a temperature of 1350oC with 1 hour holding in an argon atmosphere. A three-parameter Weibull distribution function provides a satisfactory fit for the size distribution of the synthesized TiC nanoparticles. Varying the synthesis time at 1350oC revealed the particle coarsening exponent ‘n’ to be 2.9 and that particle shapes change from spherical at 1 hour to more faceted at longer holding times of 4 hours.