Kyeong-Sik Cho

In situ enhancement of toughness of SiC—TiB2 composites

A process based on liquid phase sintering and subsequent annealing for grain growth is presented to obtain the in situ enhancement of toughness of SiC–30 wt%, 50 wt%, and 70 wt% TiB2 composites. Its microstructures consist of uniformly distributed elongated α-SiC grains, relatively equiaxed TiB2 grains, and yttrium aluminium garnet (YAG) as a grain boundary phase. The composites were fabricated from β-SiC and TiB2 powders with the liquid forming additives of Al2O3 and Y2O3 by hot-pressing at 1850°C and subsequent annealing at 1950°C. The annealing led to the in situ growth of elongated α-SiC grains, due to the β→α phase transformation of SiC, and the coarsening of TiB2 grains. The fracture toughness of the SiC–50 wt% TiB2 composites after 6 h annealing was 7.3 MPa m1/2, approximately 60% higher than that of as-hot-pressed composites (4.5 MPa m1/2). Bridging and crack deflection by the elongated α-SiC grains and coarse TiB2 grains appear to account for the increased toughness of the composites.

Effect of annealing on mechanical properties of self-reinforced alpha-silicon carbide

Alpha-SIC powder containing 7.2 wt % Y3Al5O12 (YAG, yttrium aluminum garnet) and 4.8 wt % SiO2 as sintering aids were hot-pressed (SC0) at 1820°C for 1 h and subsequently annealed at 1920°C for 2 h (SC2), 4 h (SC4) and 8 h (SC8). When the annealing time was increased, the microstructure changed from equiaxed to elongated grains and resulted in self-reinforced microstructure consisted of large elongated grains and small equiaxed grains. Development of self-reinforced microstructure, consisted of mostly 6H phase, resulted in significant improvements in toughness. However, the improved toughness was offset by a significant reduction in strength as in the materials consisted of 4H originated from β-SiC. The fracture toughness and strength of the 8-h annealed materials were 5.5MPa · m1/2 and 490 MPa, respectively.

Effects of additive amount on microstructure and fracture toughness of SiCTiB2 composites

Powder mixtures of β-SiC-30 wt% TiB2 containing 5 wt% (ST1), 10 wt% (ST2), and 20 wt% (ST3) Al2O3Y2O3 as sintering additives were liquid-phase sintered at 1850 °C for 1 h by hot-pressing and subsequently annealed at 1950 °C for 2, 6, and 12 h. These materials had a microstructure of ‘in situ-toughened composites’ as a result of the β→α phase transformation of SiC during annealing. The introduction of larger amount of additives accelerated the grain growth of elongated α-SiC grains with higher aspect ratio, resulting in the improved fracture toughness. The fracture toughnesses of 12-h annealed materials with 5, 10, and 20 wt% additives were 5.7, 5.9, and 7.1 MPamsol12, respectively.

Characteristics of Large Green and Sintered Alumina Ceramics by Filter Pressing

The size of various alumina ceramics used in semiconductor and display industry is also required to increase with increase in wafer and panel size. In this research, large alumina ceramics was fabricated by filter pressing of alumina slurry using commercial powder and thereafter sintering at 1600℃ in gas furnace. The characteristics of large alumina ceramics thereby were compared to those of small alumina ceramics prepared by pressure forming such as uniaxial pressing and CIP. Careful control of properties of alumina slurry and filter pressing made the fabrication of large alumina ceramics possible, and its characteristics were equivalent to those of small alumina ceramics. The large alumina ceramics, prepared by sintering the green body of 63% relative density at 1600℃, exhibited both dense microstructure corresponding to 98.5% of relative density and 99.8% of high purity as in starting powder.

Effect of Sintering Temperature on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties for the Spark Plasma Sintered Titanium from CP-Ti Powders

The evolution of sinterability, microstructure and mechanical properties for the spark plasma sintered(SPS) Ti from commercial pure titanium(CP-Ti) was studied. The densification of titanium with 200 mesh and 400 mesh pass powder was achieved by SPS at under 10 MPa pressure and the flowing +Ar mixed gas atmosphere. The microstructure of Ti sintered up to consisted of equiaxed grains. In contrast, the growth of large elongated grains was shown in sintered bodies at with the 400 mesh pass powder and the lamella grains microstructure had been developed by increasing sintering temperature. The Vickers hardness of 240~270 HV and biaxial strength of 320~340 MPa were found for the specimen prepared at .

R-curve behavior of layered silicon carbide ceramics with surface fine microstructure

By adjusting the α : β SiC phase ratios in the individual starting powders, a layered SiC consisting of surface and inner layers with distinctively different microstructures are produced by hot-pressing and subsequent annealing. The surface layer consisted of relatively fine, equiaxed α-SiC grains, designed for high strength, while the inner layer consisted of elongated α-SiC grains, designed for high toughness. By virtue of the common SiC phase and the same sintering aids (Al2O3-Y2O3), the interlayer interfaces are chemically compatible and strongly bonded. R-curve behavior of the layered SiC was measured and compared with the related monolithic materials. The layered SiC showed better damage tolerance than monolithic materials and stronger R-curve behavior than surface layer. This superior performance of layered SiC ceramics was attributed to the contribution of both high strength of the surface layer for small flaws and high toughness of the inner layer for larger flaws.

Influence of α-SiC Seed Addition on Spark Plasma Sintering of β-SiC with Al-B-C: Microstructural Development

The unique features of spark plasma sintering process are the possibilities of a very fast heating rate and a short holding time to obtain fully dense materials. -SiC powder with 0, 2, 6, 10 wt% of -SiC particles (seeds) and 4 wt% of Al-B-C (sintering aids) were spark plasma sintered at for 10 min. The heating rate, applied pressure and sintering atmosphere were kept at , 40 MPa and a flowing Ar gas (500 CC/min). Microstructural development of SiC as function of seed content and temperature during spark plasma sintering was investigated quantitatively and statistically using image analysis. Quantitative image analyses on the sintered SiC ceramics were conducted on the grain size, aspect ratio and grain size distribution of SiC. The microstructure of SiC sintered up to consisted of equiaxed grains. In contrast, the growth of large elongated SiC grains in small matrix grains was shown in sintered bodies at and the plate-like grains interlocking microstructure had been developed by increasing sintering temperature. The introduction of -SiC seeds into -SiC accelerated the grain growth of elongated grains during sintering, resulting in the plate-like grains interlocking microstructure. In the -SiC seeds added in -SiC, the rate of grain growth decreased with -SiC seed content, however, bulk density and aspect ratio of grains in sintered body increased.

Consolidation to Bulk Ceramic Bodies from Oyster Shell Powder

Waste oyster shells create several serious problems; however, only some parts of them are being utilized currently. The ideal solution would be to convert the waste shells into a product that is both environmentally beneficial and economically viable. An experimental study is carried out to investigate the recycling possibilities for oyster shell waste. Bulk ceramic bodies are produced from the oyster shell powder in three sequential processes. First, the shell powder is calcined to form calcium oxide CaO, which is then slaked by a slaking reaction with water to produce calcium hydroxide . Then, calcium hydroxide powder is formed by uniaxial pressing. Finally, the calcium hydroxide compact is reconverted to calcium carbonate via a carbonation reaction with carbon dioxide released from the shell powder bed during firing at . The bulk body obtained from waste oyster shells could be utilized as a marine structural porous material.

Influence of CrO 3 Sealing Treatment on Properties of Plasma Sprayed Al 2 O 3 Coating

Plasma sprayed ceramic coatings inherently contain pores and usually also cracks. Post-treatment of the plasma sprayed coatings is a way to close the connected pores and cracks. In this study, post-sealing treatment in plasma sprayed coatings was employed to overcome the reduction of coating properties. plasma thermal spray coating was made on aluminum alloys plate, post coating and heat treatment at was carried out in order for final to be saturated through phase transformation. Chromia sealing began at the fine defect in coated microstructure, while larger pores were permeated later. The increase in concentration and treatment frequency of sealing solution resulted in the decrease of porosity of coating layer, while cracks occurred partially after the third treatment. After twice treatment of 10M solution, microhardness and breakdown voltage of coatings were found to increase by 50% and 390% respectively than without post-treatment.