Oxidation Resistance and Electrical Conductivity of $Ti_3SiC_2$ with Thin Oxide Layer

[ $Ti_3SiC_2$ ] was coated with $Al_2O_3$, MgO and $SiO_2$ respectively by sol-gel method and cured at 900 and $1200^{\circ}C$. The coated oxides did not react with $Ti_3SiC_2$ at $900^{\circ}C$ but reacted with it to form $TiC_x$ at $1200^{\circ}C$. The specimen coated with $SiO_2$ at $900^{\circ}C$ formed a dense protecting layer and showed the best oxidation resistance at $800^{\circ}C$ in air. However, the dense protecting layers did not form in $Al_2O_3$ and MgO coated specimens cured even at $900^{\circ}C$. MgO coated specimen showed the worst improvement in the oxidation resistance because the reactivity of MgO with $Ti_3SiC_2$ was highest. On the other hand, the electrical conductivities were measured in MgO and $Al_2O_3$ coated specimens to have TiCx but could not be measured in the $SiO_2$ coated ones because of the nonconductive dense protected layers.