Abstract:In order to explore the influence of Cu element on the morphology evolution of the in-situ TiB₂ particles, the 10 wt.% TiB₂ reinforced Al-5wt.%Cu based composite was prepared by mixed salt casting. The morphology characterization and transformation of TiB₂ reinforcements caused by Cu element were investigated by multi-scale microstructure characterization and statistics techniques. In the case of controlled casting, 5 wt.% Cu addition was found to transform the TiB₂ particle morphology from hexagonal plate with sharp edges and corners to hexagonal or tetragonal prism with chamfered edges and corners with the distinguishing growth steps both on the top surface and the side surface. The TiB₂ growth in Al-Cu matrix followed the rules: nano-scaled spherical nuclei—polyhedron grains—chamfered hexagonal particles—hexagonal plates—chamfered particles with obvious growth steps. The adsorption energy of Cu on different crystal surfaces of TiB₂ was caculated to reveal the influence mechanism and the results indicated that Cu was preferentially adsorbed on the (101(—)1)_TiB2 crystal planes, devoting to the small aspect ratio of TiB₂.

Key words: shape control; preferential adsorption; TiB₂ morphology; 2D-nucleation; growth step