Abstract
Recent experiments showed that nano-composite ceramics with particles distributed within the matrix grains and along the grain boundaries can acquire high toughening. The toughening of alumina ceramics with dispersed silicon carbide nano-particles are studied in the present paper. Three toughening mechanisms are identified: switching from the intergranular cracking to the transgranular one by nano-particles along the grain boundaries, fracture surface roughening by zigzag crack path perturbed by the internal stresses of nano-particles within the grains, and shielding by clinched rough surfaces near the crack tip. For different volume fractions of nano-particles, the estimated gross toughening agrees with the experiments.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 111-123 |
| Number of pages | 13 |
| Journal | Mechanics of Materials |
| Volume | 30 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Oct 1998 |
Keywords
- Toughening mechanisms
- Fracture
- Ceramics
- Nano-particles