We are having titanium, aluminium and graphite powders. But we don't have ball milling facility in our lab. Can we mix these manually using mortar and pestle for obtaining MAX phase powders?
How to handle titanium powder during this process?
If your powders are coarser than 10 micrometers, you can mix them dry in a mortar without any problems. If you have at least one of these powders (e.g. graphite) smaller than 5 micrometers, it is also possible in a mortar, but in an organic liquid (ethanol, isopropanol or kerosene). Don't worry about titanium and aluminum powder. Even very fine titanium and aluminum powders (approx. 1 micron) will not ignite when mixed dry or wet in a mortar, because the particles on the surface are already oxidized.
Vadim Verlotski
Thank you sir for answering my question. Can we use powders of 325 mesh of 99% purity? Could these be also mixed using mortar and pestle?
Vadim Verlotski
Following the previous question, is there a need for an inert atmosphere when we are mixing these powders? (Ti, Al, C) What safety measures one has to take while performing this?
325 mesh powders are very coarse, so they can be dry mixed simply in a closed plastic container with shaking as when mixing cocktails (just shake the can of powders for 5 minutes and the powders will mix). You don't need a mortar or shielding gas - it's very simple.
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