Effects of Ti on the Microstructural Evolution and Mechanical Property of the SiBCN-Ti Composite Ceramics

Hao Peng; Daxin Li; Zhihua Yang; Wenjiu Duan; Dechang Jia; Yu Zhou

doi:10.3390/ma16093560

Effects of Ti on the Microstructural Evolution and Mechanical Property of the SiBCN-Ti Composite Ceramics

Materials (Basel). 2023 May 6;16(9):3560. doi: 10.3390/ma16093560.

Authors

Hao Peng^{1

2}, Daxin Li^{1

2}, Zhihua Yang^{1

2

3}, Wenjiu Duan⁴, Dechang Jia^{1

2

3}, Yu Zhou^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Institute for Advanced Ceramics, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150001, China.
² Key Laboratory of Advanced Structural-Functional Integration Materials & Green Manufacturing Technology, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150001, China.
³ State Key Laboratory of Advanced Welding and Joining, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150001, China.
⁴ Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School, Tsinghua University, Shenzhen 518055, China.

Abstract

In this study, amorphous + nanocrystalline Ti-BN mixed powders were obtained through first-step mechanical alloying; subsequently, almost completely amorphous SiBCN-Ti mixed powders were achieved in the second-step milling. The SiBCN-Ti bulk ceramics were consolidated through hot pressing sintering at 1900 °C/60 MPa/30 min, and the microstructural evolution and mechanical properties of the as-sintered composite ceramics were investigated using SEM, XRD, and TEM techniques. The as-sintered SiBCN-Ti bulk ceramics consisted of substantial nanosized BN(C), SiC, and Ti(C, N) with a small amount of Si₂N₂O and TiB₂. The crystallized BN(C) enwrapped both SiC and Ti(C, N), thus effectively inhibiting the rapid growth of SiC and Ti(C, N). The sizes of SiC were ~70 nm, while the sizes of Ti(C, N) were below 30 nm, and the sizes of Si₂N₂O were over 100 nm. The SiBCN-20 wt.% Ti bulk ceramics obtained the highest flexural strength of 394.0 ± 19.0 MPa; however, the SiBCN-30 wt.% Ti bulk ceramics exhibited the optimized fracture toughness of 3.95 ± 0.21 GPa·cm^1/2, Vickers hardness of 4.7 ± 0.27 GPa, Young's modulus of 184.2 ± 8.2 GPa, and a bulk density of 2.85 g/cm³. The addition of metal Ti into a SiBCN ceramic matrix seems to be an effective strategy for microstructure optimization and the tuning of mechanical properties, thus providing design ideas for further research regarding this family of ceramic materials.

Keywords: SiBCN; Ti; mechanical alloying; mechanical properties; microstructural evolution.

Abstract

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