Effect of Residual Silicon Phase on Reaction‐Sintered Silicon Carbide

SiC/SiC composite has been regarded as a candidate for the construction material for future fusion reactors because of its high temperature stability and low activation. Typical fabrication processes for the SiC/SiC composites are chemical vapor infiltration (CVI), precursor impregnation and pyrolysis (PIP), hot pressing (HP), reaction sintering (RS) and their hybrid processes. The reaction sintering process realizes full density and near net shape capabilities of the large and complex shape parts. However, the residual silicon phase is retained in the RS-SiC matrix during the reaction-sintering process, and could affect the radiation response and creep behavior. The processing approach to reduce residual silicon phase and the effect of raw material composition (C/SiC) as well as the size on the residual silicon content in final material is presented.