Pitfalls in Parameters: Practical Process Development in Chemical Vapor Processing of SiC

Abstract

Vapor processing of silicon carbide (SiC) and other high-value materials is of interest for many industries, including aerospace and energy production. Chemical vapor infiltration (CVI) of additively manufactured components is an especially attractive manufacturing process currently in development. However, developing CVI conditions to optimize the growth of a material of interest can be very time consuming and expensive. Here, the H2-CH3SiCl3 gas system for SiC will demonstrate a novel development workflow by using calculated thermodynamics and experimental chemical vapor deposition (CVD) coatings in combination to improve the quality of CVI SiC coatings, accelerating the workflow for process development. The computational results accurately predict changes in the thermodynamic conditions tested, while CVD coatingscharacterized by Raman spectroscopy -address changes in kinetic parameters.