Effect of silicon on the synthesis of iron aluminides from elemental powders

Iron aluminides have been receiving much attention due to their excellent properties such as light weight, high strength, oxidation resistance, and corrosion resistance. These types of materials are made in a variety of methods. Various types of additives such as Si, Cr, Ta, and Nb have been added to iron aluminides to improve their properties. Silicon is one of the most effective additives. There are no comprehensive studies that can prove the final product of the Fe-Al powder system reactions in the presence of silicon. Therefore, equal molar ratios of Fe and Al powders were mixed with different amounts of Si to investigate the effect of silicon on the reactions of Fe-Al/Si powder system. The obtained samples were heat-treated at 950°C in an argon atmosphere. It has been found that the presence of silicon affects not only the type of iron aluminides and iron silicides produced but also the final morphology.