Study of the formation of nanostructured composite powders in a plasma jet

Abstract

The preparation of a titanium composite powder containing high-melting TiN nanoparticles using an electric-arc plasma torch is studied. Using an Evo MA15 electron microscope (Carl Zeiss) and a DRON-4.0 diffractometer, both the surface morphology and the internal structure of powder particles are investigated, an X-ray phase analysis of these particles is performed, and a distribution map of the elements both over the surface of the obtained composite particle and over its volume is constructed. It is shown that the nanoparticles are uniformly distributed over the entire volume of titanium particles and are completely clad with Ti. The nanostructured powders obtained in this way and used as nanomodifying additives increase the homogeneity of the distribution of the high-melting elements introduced into the melt, protect the nanoparticles from the direct interaction with ambient medium, increase their wettability, and prolong their shelf life. These factors improve the efficiency of metal and alloy nanomodification.