Effect of carbon content on the formation of Ti₃SiC₂ in the liquid silicon infiltration process

In the present work, Ti₃SiC₂-based composite was fabricated by pressureless infiltrating TiC-C preform with liquid silicon. The effect of carbon content on the phase composition and microstructure is studied, and then the reaction path of forming Ti₃SiC₂ in the liquid silicon infiltration (LSI) process is discussed. The existence of carbon is beneficial to the formation of Ti₃SiC₂, and Ti₃SiC₂ only appears in the sample with enough carbon content owing to the direct reaction between silicon melt and carbon. In the LSI process, silicon melt firstly reacts with TiC to form TiSi₂ and SiC, and then Ti-Sinch eutectic is formed by dissolving the intermediate phase TiSi2 in silicon melt. Finally, Ti₃SiC₂ is formed by the reaction between Ti-Sinch eutectic and TiC with the existence of carbon.