Kinetic role of C/Zr ratio in the reaction process, combustion behavior, and synthetic product of 70 wt.% (xC–Zr)–30 wt.% Cu

Abstract The kinetic role of C/Zr ratio in the reaction processes, combustion behaviors, and synthesized products of 70 wt.% ( x C–Zr)–30 wt.% Cu was investigated. Results indicated that ZrC particles were produced by the replacement reaction between carbon atoms and Zr–Cu melt. With an increase in C/Zr ratio, more carbon atoms combined with the zirconium atoms in Zr–Cu liquid. As a result, the formation rate of massive ZrC enhanced, which shortened the ignition time of combustion reaction. On the other hand, the quantity, the lattice parameter, and the x value of synthetic ZrC x increased, while the byproduct Cu y Zr x compounds decreased. These effects contributed to an increase in the burning temperature and ZrC x particle size. Moreover, it is also revealed that the formation of ZrC x is a multistep process, which leads to an inhomogeneous distribution of the particle size. Results from this work offer a theoretical reference for the kinetic research of combustion synthesis and related techniques, and provide a valuable guide to the in situ synthesis of composite materials containing ZrC.