Kinetics of the graphitization of dispersed diamonds at “low” temperatures

The bulk density of graphitized ultradisperse diamond (UDD) was measured by a gamma-ray attenuation method at 1370–1870 K. These data combined with small angle x-ray scattering and true density measurements of the samples heated at various fixed temperatures were used to study the graphitization kinetics of the UDD. The reaction rate was modeled as a migration rate of the interface between the developing graphite-like carbon and the remaining diamond phase. A “reducing sphere” model was used to obtain the rates from the changes in densities. The estimated kinetic parameters in an Arrhenius expression, namely the activation energy, E=45±4 kcal/mol, and the pre-exponential factor, A=74±5 nm/s, allow quantitative calculations of the diamond graphitization rates in and around the indicated temperature range. The calculated graphitization rates agree well with the graphitization rates of diamonds with different dispersity estimated from high-resolution transmission electron microscopy data. The large difference between the rates and the kinetic parameters obtained in this study and those estimated by G. Davies and T. Evans [Proc. R. Soc. London 328, 413 (1972)] for the temperature range 2150–2300 K indicates that there are different graphitization mechanisms operating in the “low” and “high” temperatures regions.