Compatibility study of molten ZrAl alloy with Y₂O₃ ceramic at 2100 K

Liquid ZrAl alloy with Y₂O₃ ceramic interaction experiments were undertaken at high temperature with the purpose of developing reusable crucible for melting reactive alloys. The alloy used in this work included 90 at. % Zr and 65 at. % Zr. These experiments were conducted in equipment which was recently established in our laboratory. The system were held at 2100 K for about 1 minute and then cooled. All samples were subjected micro structure examination. The scanning electron micrographs revealed that a small amount of yttrium had diffused in to the grain boundaries. Despite the normal expectations for reactive wetting, no transition interface had developed, but the solidified alloy was tightly bound to the yttria ceramics. (author)