Residual stress of ruthenium powder samples compacted by spark-plasma-sintering (SPS) determined by X-ray diffraction

Spark-plasma-sintering (SPS) experiments of cylindrical ruthenium powder samples have been performed at different sintering temperatures between 1200 °C and 1600 °C applying a comparatively short sintering time of 1 min. The compacted samples have been characterized in respect of crystallite size, phase composition, and microstructure by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy techniques. Furthermore, the stress components σ11 and σ33 directed parallel and vertical to the compaction axis have been determined by means of the sin2ψ method. The SPS process resulted in a significant reduction of the residual stress in the material in comparison with samples compacted by conventional hot pressing methods (HP) which were compacted at 1200 °C and 1400 °C for 60 min. This effect is also associated with an enhanced crystallite growth.