Dingyu Li

Numerical Simulation for Thermal Shock Resistance of Ultra-High Temperature Ceramics Considering the Effects of Initial Stress Field

Taking the hafnium diboride ceramic as an example, the effects of heating rate, cooling rate, thermal shock initial temperature, and external constraint on the thermal shock resistance (TSR) of ultra-high temperature ceramics (UHTCs) were studied through numerical simulation in this paper. The results show that the external constraint has an approximately linear influence on the critical rupture temperature difference of UHTCs. The external constraint prepares a compressive stress field in the structure because of the predefined temperature field, and this compressive stress field relieves the tension stress in the structure when it is cooled down and then it improves the TSR of UHTCs. As the thermal shock initial temperature, a danger heating rate (or cooling rate) exists where the critical temperature difference is the lowest.

Theoretical Research on Thermal Shock Resistance of Ultra-High Temperature Ceramics Focusing on the Adjustment of Stress Reduction Factor

The thermal shock resistance of ceramics depends on not only the mechanical and thermal properties of materials, but also the external constraint and thermal condition. So, in order to study the actual situation in its service process, a temperature-dependent thermal shock resistance model for ultra-high temperature ceramics considering the effects of the thermal environment and external constraint was established based on the existing theory. The present work mainly focused on the adjustment of the stress reduction factor according to different thermal shock situations. The influences of external constraint on both critical rupture temperature difference and the second thermal shock resistance parameter in either case of rapid heating or cooling conditions had been studied based on this model. The results show the necessity of adjustment of the stress reduction factor in different thermal shock situations and the limitations of the applicable range of the second thermal shock resistance parameter. Furthermore, the model was validated by the finite element method.

A Thermodamage Strength Theoretical Model of Ceramic Materials Taking into Account the Effect of Residual Stress

A thermodamage strength theoretical model taking into account the effect of residual stress was established and applied to each temperature phase based on the study of effects of various physical mechanisms on the fracture strength of ultrahigh-temperature ceramics. The effects of SiC particle size, crack size, and SiC particle volume fraction on strength corresponding to different temperatures were studied in detail. This study showed that when flaw size is not large, the bigger SiC particle size results in the greater effect of tensile residual stress in the matrix grains on strength reduction, and this prediction coincides with experimental results; and the residual stress and the combined effort of particle size and crack size play important roles in controlling material strength.