Review: reaction synthesis processing of Ni–Al intermetallic materials

Nickel aluminide intermetallic compounds possess attractive properties that make them good candidates for high temperature structural applications. The production of these materials in short processing times and low energy via reaction synthesis routes has been reviewed in this article including most recent novel reactive methods applied to Ni–Al intermetallics (e.g. microwave combustion synthesis and hot extrusion reaction synthesis). Future directions in this field have been suggested.