Investigation of the effects of phase transformations in micro and nano aluminum powders on kinetics of oxidation using thermogravimetric analysis

Abstract

Aluminum micro and nanoparticles are key ingredients in the synthesis of nano energetic materials. Hence it is important to characterize the kinetics and the rate controlling process of their oxidation. The literature shows that the mass diffusion and phase transformation within the aluminum oxide shell are important. However, the description of physical processes regarding simultaneous oxidation and phase transformation is lacking. In this paper, the controlled thermogravimetric (TGA) oxidation of 40–60 nm and 1 µm Al powders is investigated at constant heating rates and under isothermal conditions, respectively, upon varying the partial pressure of oxygen. It is found that the core–shell model of homogenous oxidation is applicable to explain the TGA results when the shell does not undergo phase transformation, which predicts the apparent activation energy in good agreement with the literature data. On the other hand, the simultaneous oxidation and phase transformation is able to be addressed using the JMAK model which reveals key parameters of the rate controlling processes. Mass diffusion is indeed rate determining during the oxidation of Al micro and nanopowders while the kinetics of the reaction is fast. Unlike the micron powders, the particle size distribution has a significant effect on the shape of the oxidation curves of the nanopowders.