Formation of amorphous Ti-50 at.% Pt by solid-state reactions during mechanical alloying
ML Mahlatji, S Chikosha, HK Chikwanda, WE Stumpf, CW Siyasiya

Mechanical alloying of an equiatomic mixture of crystalline Ti and Pt elemental powders in a high-energy ball mill formed an amorphous alloy by solid-state reactions. Mechanical alloying was carried out in an argon atmosphere at a rotation speed of 1200 r/min and a 20:1 ball-to-powder weight ratio, for time intervals of 4 to 40 hours. At an intermediate stage of mechanical alloying, scanning electron microscopy showed the formation of characteristic layered structures of inhomogeneous composition within the powder particles. X-ray diffraction analysis showed the gradual disappearance of crystalline Bragg peaks and the emergence of broad amorphous maxima as milling progressed. The amorphization process was completed after 8–12 hours. The amorphous state of the product indicated that temperatures during processing did not exceed the crystallization temperature of the alloy.
Keywords: TiPt alloy, mechanical alloying, amorphization, solid-state reactions.