Mechanical properties and fracture behavior of fibrous Al2O3/SiC ceramics

Fibrous Al2O3 ceramics with a mixture of SiC and Al2O3 as the cell boundaries were fabricated by extrusion-molding and hot-pressing techniques. The effects of the cell boundary composition on the mechanical properties and fracture behavior are investigated. It is shown that a 65:35 mixture of SiC:Al2O3 can act as a suitable cell boundary for Al2O3 cells. In bending tests, such a ceramic displays a non-catastrophic fracture behavior with reasonable load-carrying capability, and its fracture energy and apparent toughness are up to 1349 J/m(2) and 6.0 MPa m(1/2), respectively. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.