A incorporação do gadolínio diretamente no combustível de reatores nucleares para geração de eletricidade é importante para compensação da reatividade e para o ajuste da distribuição da densidade de potência, permitindo ciclos de queima mais longos, com intervalo de recarga de 18 meses, otimizando-se a utilização do combustível. A incorporação do Gd2O3 sob a forma de pó homogeneizado a seco diretamente com o pó de UO2 é o método comercialmente mais atraente devido à sua simplicidade . Contudo, este método de incorporação conduz a dificuldades na obtenção de corpos sinterizados com a densidade niínima especificada, devido a um bloqueio no processo de sinterização. Pouca informação existe na literatura específica sobre o possível mecanismo deste bloqueio, restrita principalmente à hipótese da formação de uma fase (U,Gd)O2 rica em gadolínio com baixa difusividade. Este trabalho tem como objetivo a investigação do mecanismo de bloqueio da sinterização neste sistema, contribuindo para o esclarecimento da causa deste bloqueio e na elaboração de possíveis soluções tecnológicas. Foi comprovado experimentalmente que o mecanismo responsável pelo bloqueio é baseado na formação de poros estáveis devido ao efeito Kirkendall, originados por ocasião da formação da solução sólida durante a etapa intermediária da sinterização, sendo difícil a sua eliminação posterior, nas etapas finais do processo de sinterização. Com base no conhecimento deste mecanismo, possíveis propostas são apresentadas na direção da solução tecnológica do problema de densificação característico do sistema UO2-Gd203. / The incorporation of gadolinium directly into nuclear power reactor fuel is important from the point of reactivity compensation and adjustment of power distribution enabling thus longer fliel cycles and optimized fuel utilization. The incorporation of Gd2O3 powder directly into the UO2 powder by dry mechanical blending is the most attractive process because of its simplicity. Nevertheless, processing by this method leads to difficulties while obtaining sintered pellets with the minimum required density. This is due to blockages during the sintering process. There is little information in published literature about the possible mechanism for this blockage and this is restricted to the hypothesis based on formation of a low difiiisivity Gd rich phase (U,Gd)O2. The objective of this investigation has been to study the blockage mechanism in this system during the sintering process, contributing thus, to clarify the cause for the blockage and to propose feasible technological solutions. Experimentally it has been shown that the blocking mechanism is based on pore formation because of the Kirkendall effect. Formation of a solid solution during the intermediate stage of sintering leads to formation of large pores, which are difficult to remove in the final stage of sintering. Based on this mechanism, technical solutions have been proposed to resolve densification problems in the UO2-Gd2O3 system.

This work deals with issues of preparation of intermetallics based on iron, nickel and titanium aluminides. It works with an idea of preparation of bulk material by reaction synthe-sis from kinetic spraying deposits by cold spray. Theoretical part is concerned with phases and compounds of these aluminides for structural applications, their characteristics and present fabrication. In experimental part there are studied microstructures created by annealing of deposits.

Les systèmes barrière thermique actuels connaissent une importante dispersion de durées de vie liée principalement aux ondulations de surface du revêtement métallique β-(Ni,Pt)Al provoquant l’écaillage du dépôt céramique. Les revêtements γ-γ’ riches en platine sont étudiés en tant qu’alternative au système actuel. Ce travail de thèse s’est intéressé à l’élaboration des revêtements γ-γ’ riches en platine sur un superalliage à base de nickel, l’AM1 à partir de procédés conventionnels : dépôt électrolytique de platine et aluminisation courte. Les mécanismes de dégradation par oxydation cyclique à 1100°C ont été étudiés sur des systèmes revêtement/AM1 et sur des systèmes barrière thermique. Pour comparaison, trois types de revêtement ont été élaborés : γ-γ’ Pt seul, γ-γ’ Pt+Al et β-(Ni,Pt)Al. Ces essais ont mis en évidence une meilleure tenue à l’oxydation cyclique des systèmes revêtus γ-γ’ Pt+Al comparée aux deux autres systèmes revêtus. L’importance de l’ajout d’aluminium dès l’élaboration sur la tenue à l’oxydation cyclique a été soulignée. La modélisation p-kp a mis en avant une augmentation de la proportion d’écaillage au cours du temps du fait de la dégradation de l’interface métal/oxyde et une augmentation du kp du fait de la formation d’un oxyde à croissance plus rapide. Outre l’oxydation, les phénomènes d’interdiffusion lors des tous premiers instants à haute température ont été étudiés à partir de matériaux modèles (Ni13Al et Ni11Al10Cr) et de revêtements de Pt et/ou de Pt-Ir. Ces essais ont mis en avant la rapide formation de la phase α-NiPtAl, les transformations de phases et les chemins de diffusion à 1100°C dans les systèmes Ni-Al-Pt et Ni-Al-Cr-Pt. L’effet du chrome et de l’iridium sur les cinétiques de diffusion a été évalué. La modélisation de l’interdiffusion a mis en évidence les interactions chimiques entre les espèces et une sursaturation en lacunes dans la zone d’interdiffusion prouvant que l’effet Kirkendall est responsable de la formation des pores. / TBC systems currently used in aircraft engines with a Pt-modified aluminide coating β-(Ni,Pt)Al show an important lifetime dispersion due to the surface undulations of the bond-coating. This phenomenon called rumpling leads to the ceramic scale spallation and is the most common degradation mechanism. Pt-rich γ-γ’ bond-coatings have been extensively studied for their corrosion and oxidation resistance, and as a lower cost alternative to β-(Ni,Pt)Al bond-coatings. The aim of this work was to fabricate Pt-rich γ-γ’ bond-coatings on a first generation Ni-based superalloy, the AM1. Conventional processes were used as a platinum electroplating and a short aluminizing step. The failure mechanisms occurring by cyclic oxidation at 1100°C were studied on coating/superalloy systems and on TBC systems. Three kinds of coatings were fabricated: Pt-only γ-γ’, Pt+Al γ-γ’ and β-(Ni,Pt)Al. These tests highlighted the best oxidation resistance for the Pt+Al γ-γ’/AM1 systems when compared with the two other systems. Al addition during the coating fabrication is necessary to improve the lifetime. The p-kp modeling results pointed out that the oxide scale spalling probability p increases due to the metal/oxide interface degradation with time. If the spallation increases, a breakaway locally occurs with the formation of a fast-growing oxide explaining the kp progression. The interdiffusion phenomena were also investigated during the first times at high temperature from model alloys (Ni13Al and Ni11Al10Cr) and Pt and/or Pt-Ir coatings. These investigations emphasized the rapid formation of the α-NiPtAl phase, the phase transformations and diffusion paths at 1100°C in the ternary Ni-Al-Pt and quaternary Ni-Al-Cr-Pt systems. Chromium and iridium effect was evaluated on the diffusion kinetics. Interdiffusion modeling highlighted the chemical interactions between the species and a vacancy supersaturation in the interdiffusion zone proving that Kirkendall effect is responsible for void formation.

Abstract This research is designed to investigate the occurrence of interdiffusion-induced mesopores, Brownian motion, cleaving and healing and defect clusters in three binary composites, i.e. Ni1-xO/Co1-xO, Ni1-xO/ZrO2 and Co1-xO/ZrO2 of the Ni1-xO-Co1-xO-ZrO2 system. Firstly, the (NimCo1-m)1-£_O/Ni-doped Co3-dO4 composites prepared by reactive sintering Ni1-xO and Co1-xO powders (1:2 molar ratio, denoted as N1C2) at 1000oC with or without further annealing at 720oC in air were studied by X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy to clarify the formation mechanism of mesoporous spinel precipitates. Submicron-sized inter- and intragranular pores, due to incomplete sintering and grain boundary detachment, prevails in (Ni0.33Co0.67)1-£_O protoxide with rock salt structure; whereas nanosize pores due to Kirkendall effect were restricted to the spinel precipitates having Ni component progressively expelled upon annealing. A rapid net vacancy flux and a tensile misfit stress perpendicular to the protoxide/spinel interface caused the formation of elongated and aligned {100}-faceted mesopores in the spinel precipitates with a relatively low equilibrium vacancy concentration. Aligned mesopores in diffusion zone of nonstoichiometric metal oxides have potential applications on thermal barrier bond coating and mass-transport limited heterogeneous catalysis. Also, this thesis deals with the reorientation and shape change of low-crystal-symmetry (non-cubic) ZrO2 within the high-crystal-symmetry grains of Co1-xO/Ni1-xO cubic rock salt-type structure. ZrO2/Co1-xO composites 1:99 and ZrO2/Ni1-xO composites 1:9 in molar ratio were sintered and then annealed at 1650oC for 24 and 100 h in air to induce reorientation of the embedded particles. Transmission electron microscopic observations in both systems indicated that the submicron tetragonal/monoclinic (t/m) ZrO2 particles fell into three topotaxial relationships with respect to the host Co1-xO/Ni1-xO grain: (1) parallel topotaxy, (2) ¡§eutectic¡¨ topotaxy i.e. [100]Z//[111]C,N, [010]Z//[0 1]C,N and (3) ¡§occasional¡¨ topotaxy [100]Z//[111]C,N, [01 ]Z//[0 1]C,N. The parallel topotaxy has a beneficial low energy for the family of {100}Z/C,N and {111}Z/C,N interfaces. The change from the occasional topotaxy to an energetically more favorable eutectic topotaxy was likely achieved by a rotation of the ZrO2 particles over a specific (100)Z/(111)C,N interface. Brownian-type rotation is probable for the embedded t-ZrO2 particles in terms of anchorage release at the interphase interface with the Co1-xO/Ni1-xO host. Detachment or bypassing of rock salt type grain boundaries could also cause orientation as well as shape changes of intergranular ZrO2 particles. Zirconia-polymorphism-induced cleaving and spontaneous healing by precipitation was studied in Co1-xO polycrystals containing a dispersion of ZrO2 particles. Conventional, analytical, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy indicated that the Co1-xO matrix cleaves parallel to {100} and {110} planes and heals itself by co-precipitation of parallel-topotaxial ZrO2/Co3-£_O4 particles upon cooling. Due to size effect and matrix constraint, nanometer-size ZrO2 precipitates at cleavages were able to retain tetragonality upon further cooling to room temperature. Paracrystalline array of defect cluster was shown to form in Zr-doped Ni1-xO and Co1-xO polycrystals while prepared by sintering at relative high temperature, i.e., 1650oC to increase the defect concentration. Paracrystalline array of defect clusters in Co3-£_O4 spinel structure also occurred when doped with Zr4+ at high temperature or cooled below 900oC to activate oxy-precipitation of Co3-dO4 at dislocations. transmission electron microscopic observations indicated the spinel precipitate and its paracrystal predominantly formed at the ZrO2/Co1-xO interface and the cleavages/dislocations of the Co1-xO host. Defect chemistry consideration suggests the paracrystal is due to the assembly of charge- and volume-compensating defects of the 4:1 type with four octahedral vacant sites surrounding one Co3+-filled tetrahedral interstitial site. The spacing of paracrystalline distribution is 3.3, 2.9 and 4.9 times the lattice parameter for Zr-doped Ni1-xO, Zr-doped Co1-xO and Zr-doped Co3-dO4. This spacing between defect clusters is about 0.98 times that of the previously studied undoped Co3-dO4. There is much larger (3.4 times difference) paracrystalline spacing for Zr-doped Co3-£_O4 than its parent phase of Zr-doped Co1-xO.

This thesis deals with reaction synthesis of materials Fe–Al, Fe–Cu and Fe–Ni from cold spray. In literature analysis are introduced these systems and for each system there is brief description of binary equilibrium diagram. Furthermore here are some short explanations of diffusion, Kirkendall effect and other possible processing technologies of intermetallic materials. In experimental part, samples of sprayed materials were annealed and then microstructural changes were investigated. This thesis contains photographs of microstructure, results from scanning electron microscopy, X-ray, and measurements of microhardness.

No description available.

The electro–mechanical connection between under bump metallization (UBM) and solder in flip–chip bonding is achieved by the formation of brittle intermetallic compounds (IMCs) during the soldering process. These IMCs continue to grow in the solid–state during storage at room temperature and service at an elevated temperature leading to degradation of the contacts. In this thesis, the diffusion–controlled growth mechanism of the phases and the formation of the Kirkendall voids at the interface of UBM (Cu, Ni, Au, Pd, Pt) and Sn (bulk/electroplated) are studied extensively. Based on the microstructural analysis in SEM and TEM, the presence of bifurcation of the Kirkendall marker plane, a very special phenomenon discovered recently, is found in the Cu–Sn system. The estimated diffusion coefficients at these marker planes indicate one of the reasons for the growth of the Kirkendall voids, which is one of the major reliability concerns in a microelectronic component. Systematic experiments using different purity of Cu are conducted to understand the effect of impurities on the growth of the Kirkendall voids. It is conclusively shown that increase in impurity enhances the growth of voids. The growth rates of the interdiffusion zone are found to be comparable in the Cu–Sn and the Ni–Sn systems. EPMA and TEM analyses indicate the growth of a metastable phase in the Ni–Sn system in the low temperature range. Following, the role of Ni addition in Cu on the growth of IMCs in the Cu–Sn system is studied based on the quantitative diffusion analysis. The analysis of thermodynamic driving forces, microstructure and crystal structure of Cu6Sn5 shed light on the atomic mechanism of diffusion. It does not change the crystal structure of phases; however, the microstructural evolution, the diffusion rates of components and the growth of the Kirkendall voids are strongly influenced in the presence of Ni. Considering microstructure of the product phases in various Cu/Sn and Cu(Ni)/Sn diffusion couples, it has been observed that (i) phases have smaller grains and nucleate repeatedly, when they grow from Cu or Cu(Ni) alloy, and (ii) the same phases have elongated grains, when they grow from another phase. A difference in growth rate of the phases is found in bulk and electroplated diffusion couples in the Au–Sn system. The is explained in AuSn4 based on the estimated tracer diffusion coefficients, homologous temperature of the experiments, grain size distribution and crystal structure of the phase. The growth rates of the phases in the Au–Sn system are compared with the Pd–Sn and the Pt–Sn systems. Similar to the Au–Sn system, the growth rate of the interdiffusion zone is found to be parabolic in the Pd–Sn system; however, it is linear in the Pt–Sn system. Following, the effect of addition of Au, Pd and Pt in Cu is studied on growth rate of the phases. An analysis on the formation of the Kirkendall voids indicates that the addition of Pd or Pt is deleterious to the structure compared to the addition of Au. This study indicates that formation of voids is equally influenced by the presence of inorganic as well as organic impurities.