Siliconizing

siliconizing

[′sil·ə·kə‚nīz·iŋ]

(metallurgy)

Diffusing silicon into solid metal at an elevated temperature.

McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical Terms, 6E, Copyright © 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Siliconizing

 

the surface or volume saturation of a material with silicon. Siliconizing is effected by treating the material either in silicon vapors, which are formed above a silicon charge at high temperatures, or in a gaseous medium containing chlorosilanes. The chlorosilanes are reduced by hydrogen, for example, according to the reaction SiCl₄ + 2H₂ = Si + 4HC1. Siliconizing is used primarily as a means of protecting refractory metals (W, Mo, Ta, Ti) from oxidation. Resistance to oxidation is brought about by the formation of dense, self-healing, diffused suicide coatings (WSi₂, MoSi₂) during the siliconizing process. Siliconized graphite has found widespread application. [23–1081–]

The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.