Pesting of the high-temperature intermetallic MoSi2

Degradation resulting from environmental effects on the properties of high-temperature intermetallics has recently stimulated much interest in the materials science community. Most notably, iron, nickel, and titanium aluminides were found to be more ductile at room temperature when tested in vacuum or dry oxygen as compared to laboratory air. Environmental oxidation can also degrade materials to a measurable, sometimes catastrophic, extent. For example, an important oxidation-induced degradation phenomenon observed in intermetallics is pest disintegration. It was first observed in molybdenum disilicide in 1955. Since then, pest disintegration has been reported in many intermetallics, including silicides, aluminides, and beryllides. This article examines the pesting of MoSi2 and presents kinetic processes responsible for pesting.