Kinetic Study of Oxidation of Ag-Sn-Zn Solid Solution Powders via Hot Mechanochemical Processing

Ag-based electrical contact materials are essential in low-voltage devices such as relays, switches, circuit breakers, and contactors. Historically, Ag-CdO composites have been preferred due to their superior electrical and thermal conductivities, resistance to arcing, and mechanical strength. However, the toxicity of Cd has led to increased restrictions on its use. With the aim of contributing to the development of a new environment-friendly, Ag-Zn₂SnO₄-based electrical contact material, the kinetics of the hot mechanochemical oxidation of a Ag-Sn-Zn solid solution obtained by mechanical alloying were investigated. The results indicated that the proposed synthesis route produces Ag-based composites with a homogeneous distribution of nanoscale Zn₂SnO₄ precipitates, which is unattainable through conventional material processing methods. This kinetic study established that the mechanochemical oxidation of the Ag-Sn-Zn solid solution follows the Johnson-Mehl-Avrami-Kolmogorov model. An analysis of the microstructure and the relationship between the activation energy "<i>Ea</i>" and the Avrami exponent "<i>n</i>" from experimental data fitting suggests that the primary mechanism for the oxidation of the Ag-Sn-Zn solid solution during the hot mechanochemical process is related to the three-dimensional oxide growth being limited by oxygen diffusion after its immediate initial nucleation.