Synthesis and characterization of spark plasma sintered Ti3SiC2/Pb composites

Dense Ti3SiC2/Pb composites were successfully synthesized from Ti3SiC2 and PbO powders by spark plasma sintering. The reaction mechanism was discussed on the basis of thermodynamic principles. The sintering process was optimized and the sintering characteristics of the Ti3SiC2–PbO system were studied. The effects of PbO content on the density, micro-hardness, mechanical and tribological properties of the composites were investigated. Micro-hardness, flexural strength and compression strength of the composites were found to increase with the increase of PbO content, due to the grain refinement of Ti3SiC2. The maximum values of the flexural and compression strength were 480 and 1645 MPa, respectively. Additionally, the wear rates of Ti3SiC2/Pb—Inconel 718 alloy tribopairs decreased with the increase of PbO content at room temperature.