Another interesting point to note is the ability to sinter highly reactive magnesium metal
to high temperature in atmospheric air conditions without the need for an inert protective
atmosphere, unlike in conventional sintering.
X-ray diffraction of the magnesium compact after microwave sintering and hot extrusion
revealed the presence of pure magnesium peaks only, as shown in Figure 4.46. No oxides or
other impurity phases were detected. This may be attributed to the shorter sintering time
required for microwave heating and the limited supply of oxygen within the ceramic crucible
used to contain the magnesium billet, as shown in Figure A.4 in Appendix A.
Most importantly, the end properties of microwave-sintered magnesium are not affected
by the absence of an inert atmosphere during sintering, which will contribute to significant
cost savings.
4.3.5.1 Microwave Sintering of Magnesium Composites
Further work was carried out by the same research group to synthesize different
magnesium-based composites using hybrid microwave heating [64–69]. Different types