Microwave hybrid synthesis of silicon carbide nanopowders

Nanosized silicon carbide powders were synthesised from a mixture of silica gel and carbon through both the conventional and microwave heating methods. Reaction kinetics of SiC formation were found to exhibit notable differences for the samples heated in microwave field and furnace. In the conventional method SiC nanopowders can be synthesised after 105 min heating at 1500 °C in a coke-bed using an electrical tube furnace. Electron microscopy studies of these powders showed the existence of equiaxed SiC nanopowders with an average particle size of 8.2 nm. In the microwave heating process, SiC powders formed after 60 min; the powder consisted of a mixture of SiC nanopowders (with two average particle sizes of 13.6 and 58.2 nm) and particles in the shape of long strands (with an average diameter of 330 nm).
The powders were prepared by a sol-gel process. Dielectric constants (ϵ′) and dielectric loss tangents (tanδ) were measured within the microwave frequency range from 4 to18 GHz. Both ϵ′ and tanδ of pure SiC nanopowder are much higher (ϵ′=40–50, tanδ=0.6–0.7) than for the doped ones over the frequency range. The dielectric parameters decreased with increasing aluminum and nitrogen contents. Infrared (IR) spectra were measured in the range from 500 to 4000 cm−1, showing that the background of pure SiC nanopowder is also much higher than for the doped ones. The possible mechanisms of these promising features of undoped SiC nanopowder are discussed.
By a simple and controlled method, that is, by electroless plating, nickel has been deposited on the surfaces of Silicon Carbide Nanopowders Energy dispersive spectrometry (EDS) spectra show that pre-treatments of the silicon carbide nanoparticles have an important influence on the effect of electroless nickel plating. Transmission electron microscopy images and EDS spectra of silicon carbide nanoparticles before and after electroless nickel plating reveal that nickel has been deposited on the surface of silicon carbide nanoparticles and the deposited nickel and silicon carbide nanoparticles are bound tightly.