The Effects of Storing Porous Silicon Produced from Magnesium Silicide(Mg₂Si) in Inert Gas and Ambient Air

Author(s):

Nathan A Banek, Dustin T Abele, Michael J Wagner, and Wayne Churaman

Abstract:

Porous silicon was synthesized by reacting magnesium silicide with aluminum chloride. Samples were aged separately under both nitrogen gas and ambient air for up to 29 days. No discernable change was observed for the sample stored in nitrogen when analyzed by X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and thermogravimetric analysis while the sample stored in air had increased oxidation and silicon–hydrogen bond loss. Energetic performance for the sample stored in nitrogen was 880 m/s while the sample stored in air failed to propagate when ignited.