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Research Article

Wear-resistant Ag-MAX phase 3D interpenetrating-phase composites: Processing, structure, and properties

Yu Guo1,2,§, Xi Xie1,§, Zengqian Liu1,2( ), Longchao Zhuo3( ), Jian Zhang1,4,5, Shaogang Wang5, Qiqiang Duan1, Qing Jia1,2, Dake Xu4,5, Weihai Xue1, Deli Duan1, Filippo Berto6, Zhefeng Zhang1,2( ), Rui Yang1,2
Shi-Changxu Innovation Center for Advanced Materials, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang 110016, China
School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China
School of Materials Science and Engineering, Xi’an University of Technology, Xi’an 710048, China
Electrobiomaterials Institute, Key Laboratory for Anisotropy and Texture of Materials (Ministry of Education), Northeastern University, Shenyang 110819, China
Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang 110016, China
Department of Chemical Engineering, Materials and Environment, Sapienza University of Rome, Roma 00185, Italy

§ Yu Guo and Xi Xie contributed equally to this work.

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Graphical Abstract

A series of Ag-Ti3SiC2 composites with three-dimensional (3D) interpenetrating-phase architectures were fabricated by pressureless infiltration of Ag melt into partially sintered Ti3SiC2 scaffolds. These composites exhibited an outstanding combination of properties with high hardness, high flexural strength, good wear resistance, and decent fracture toughness.

Abstract

Electrical contact materials are generally Ag- or Cu-based composites and play a critical role in ensuring the reliability and efficiency of electrical equipments and electronic instruments. The MAX (M is an early transition metal, A is an element from III or IV main groups, and X is carbon or/and nitrogen) phase ceramics display a unique combination of properties and may serve as an ideal reinforcement phase for electrical contact materials. The biological materials evolved in nature generally exhibit three-dimensional (3D) interpenetrating-phase architectures, which may offer useful inspiration for the architectural design of electrical contact materials. Here, a series of bi-continuous Ag-Ti3SiC2 MAX phase composites with high ceramic contents exceeding 50 vol.% and having micron- and ultrafine-scaled 3D interpenetrating-phase architectures, wherein both constituents were continuous and mutually interspersed, were exploited by pressureless infiltration of Ag melt into partially sintered Ti3SiC2 scaffolds. The mechanical and electrical properties as well as the friction and wear performance of the composites were investigated and revealed to be closely dependent on the ceramic contents and characteristic structural dimensions. The composites exhibited a good combination of properties with high hardness over 2.3 GPa, high flexural strength exceeding 530 MPa, decent fracture toughness over 10 MPa·m1/2, and good wear resistance with low wear rate at an order of 10−5 mm3/(N·m), which were much superior compared to the counterparts made by powder metallurgy methods. In particular, the hardness, electrical conductivity, strength, and fracture toughness of the composites demonstrated a simultaneous improvement as the structure was refined from micron- to ultrafine-scales at equivalent ceramic contents. The good combination of properties along with the facile processing route makes the Ag-Ti3SiC2 3D interpenetrating-phase composites appealing for electrical contact applications.

Keywords

three-dimensional (3D) interpenetrating-phase architectureAg-MAX (M = early transition metal, A = element from III or IV main groups, and X = carbon or/and nitrogen) phase compositesmelt infiltrationelectrical contact materialsmechanical propertieswear resistance

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Nano Research
Volume 17 Issue 2,
February 2024
Pages 806-819
DOI: 10.1007/s12274-023-6015-1
Cite this article:
Guo Y, Xie X, Liu Z, et al. Wear-resistant Ag-MAX phase 3D interpenetrating-phase composites: Processing, structure, and properties. Nano Research, 2024, 17(2): 806-819. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-023-6015-1
Topics:
Nanocomposites
Part of a topical collection:
NR45 Awards in Bio-inspired Nanomaterials, 2023

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Received: 28 March 2023
Revised: 03 July 2023
Accepted: 17 July 2023
Published: 29 August 2023
© Tsinghua University Press 2023
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