In situ investigation of the silicon carbide particles sintering

A real-time observation of the microstructure evolution of irregularly shaped silicon carbide powders during solid state sintering is realized by using synchrotron radiation computerized topography (SR-CT) technique. The process of sintering neck growth and material migration during sintering are clearly distinguished from 2D and 3D reconstructed images. The sintering neck size of the sample is presented for quantitative analysis of the sintering kinetics during solid state sintering. The neck size-time curve is obtained. Compared with traditional sintering theories, the neck growth exponent (7.87) obtained by SR-CT experiment is larger than that of the two-sphere model. Such condition is discussed and shown in terms of sintering neck growth, in which the sintering process slows down when the particle shape is irregular rather than spherical.