Ceramic fibrous monolithic structures

High-strength ceramic fibers and composite structures that contain them are generally expensive. In a lower-cost approach for fabricating fibrous composites, reinforcing fiber-like cells that are distinct from a continuous matrix phase called the cell boundary can be formed in situ from powders. Structures can be constructed by assembly and consolidation of filaments that consist of the cell phase and its surrounding cell boundary.

Fabrication of ceramic fibrous monoliths (FMs) is reviewed and mechanical properties of the most widely studied FMs are discussed. Those based on Si₃N₄ cells within a BN cell boundary have achieved the best overall properties and uniformity of manufacture, but degrade severely at high temperatures in oxidizing environments. Those based on oxides are more stable, but are substantially weaker. Assessment of the future of FMs is offered, including cost reduction, fabrication practice, property improvement, and formation of complex structures.     

Modeling and Optimization of Machining Process in Discontinuously Reinforced Aluminium Matrix Composites

This article presents development of an Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) based model for the prediction of surface roughness during machining of composite material using Back Propagation algorithm. Statistically designed experiments based on Taguchi method were carried out on machining of Al/SiCp composite material. The experimentation helped generate a knowledge base for the ANN system and understand the relative importance of process, tool and work material dependent parameters on the roughness of surface generated during machining. The ANN model trained using the experimental data was found to predict the surface roughness with fair accuracy. An optimization approach was also proposed to obtain optimal cutting conditions that yield the desired surface roughness while maximizing the metal removal rate.     

碳纤维复合材料小孔加工难点与研究现状

碳纤维增强环氧树脂基复合材料在高新技术领域产品轻量化、小型化的发展趋势下具有广阔的应用前景和使用价值。微小零器件的连接装配需要进行大量的小孔加工,而碳纤维复合材料的难加工性以及小孔径加工时散热条件差、微小刀具刚度低等特点,使复合材料小孔加工比常规尺寸的孔加工更容易产生加工损伤,制孔形状、位置精度难以保证。列举了碳纤维复合材料常见的制孔损伤形式,分析了复合材料小孔加工的技术难点,综述了国内外在复合材料小孔加工机理、制孔刀具、制孔工艺等方面的研究现状。     

水声换能器及其研究和发展

阐述了水声换能器和频响特性、指向性及不同尺寸和频率范围的换能器的多种不同的校准方法，就其优缺点进行了比较。并具体介绍我国自声学院声学所成立以来水声换能器在换能材料和声学无源材料、换能吕和基陈以及水下电声测量等3个方面的取得的研究和成果。介绍了在压电陶瓷、吸声材料、换能器各种基阵等方面取得的国内外领先成果和应用现状。最后给出我国水声换能器的发展方向及动态，对其发展前景作了展望。     

Preparation of one-step NiO/Ni-CGO composites using factorial design

This work deals with the synthesis, processing and characterization of NiO/Ni-CGO composite materials as potential solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) anodes. The particulate materials were obtained by a one-step synthesis method and characterized by thermal analysis (prior to calcination) and X-ray diffraction (calcined powder). The ceramic processing of samples containing from 30 to 70 wt% NiO was carried out by factorial design. Besides the NiO content controlled during the chemical synthesis, the impacts of the pore-former content (citric acid, used in proportions of 0, 7.5 and 15 wt%) and the sintering temperature (1300, 1350 and 1400 °C) were also investigated. The open porosity of NiO-CGO composites and reduced Ni-CGO cermets was modeled as a function of factors (NiO content, citric acid content and sintering temperature) and interaction of factors. The electrical conductivity of a selected NiO-CGO composite was compared to that of a gadolinia doped ceria electrolyte.     

Tailorable magnetic properties of ε-Fe2O3/SiO2 hybrid via alkaline etching

In this study, conventional silicon alkaline-etching procedure was utilized to tailor magnetic properties of ε-Fe₂O₃/SiO₂ hybrid. It was found that the saturation magnetization, coercivity and exchange bias field can be readily changed and tailored by altering the etching time and frequency in a set of sodium hydroxide solutions. The relative quantity of ε-Fe₂O₃ phase, the proximity or pinning effect derived from SiO₂ phase as well as the phase transformation from ε-Fe₂O₃ to α-Fe₂O₃ during etching treatment were three main factors to its controllable magnetic properties. This work will shed new light on the development of functional ε-Fe₂O₃/SiO₂ composites with tailorable magnetism in practical magnetically-relevant applications.     

High-temperature flexural strength of I-CVI processed Cf/SiC composites with variable interphases

The effect of single-layer pyrocarbon (PyC) and multilayered (PyC/SiC)_n=4 interphases on the flexural strength of un-coated and SiC seal-coated stitched 2D carbon fiber reinforced silicon carbide (C_f/SiC) composites was investigated. The composites were prepared by I-CVI process. Flexural strength of the composites was measured at 1200 °C in air atmosphere. It was observed that irrespective of the type of interphase, the seal coated samples showed a higher value of flexural strength as compared to the uncoated samples. The flexural strength of 470 ± 12 MPa was observed for the seal coated C_f/SiC composite samples with multilayered interphase. The seal coated samples with single layer PyC interphase showed flexural strength of 370 ± 20 MPa. The fractured surfaces of tested samples were analyzed in detail to study the fracture phenomena. Based on microstructure-property relations, a mechanism has been proposed for the increase of flexural properties of C_f/SiC composites having multilayered interphase.     

Properties of gas detonation ceramic coatings and their effect on the osseointegration of titanium implants for bone defect replacement

An optimal performance of bone implants with bioceramic coatings is closely related to the surface modification technology. For the first time, we have evaluated a gas detonation deposition (GDD) approach to obtain biocompatible ceramic coatings based on bioglass (BG) and calcium phosphates on Ti-based alloys as prospective materials towards their application for the development of bone implants. For the production of the coatings, hydroxyapatite (HA), HA metal-substituted (containing Ag⁺, Cu²⁺, or Zn²⁺) and tricalcium phosphate (TCP) were synthesized and characterized. Pure powders and their combination with BG were used to obtain coatings on a Ti–6Al–4V alloy using the developed automatized GDD setup. The microstructure, phase and chemical composition of the produced coatings were studied using XRD, SEM-EDS and Raman spectroscopy. The produced coated materials were evaluated in vivo in Wistar rats to analyze a reparative osteogenesis over a period of 12 weeks. The results regarding the optimization of the GDD method indicate its high productivity, as confirmed by high deposition rates. The highest deposition rate was observed for the coatings obtained from the HA metal-substituted powders. The results revealed a partial transformation of a HA phase to an α-TCP phase during the deposition, with a prevalence of the HA-phase in the coatings. According to the histological evaluation, the reparative osteogenesis occurs through the perimeter of the titanium implants, whereas the regeneration level increases from the 4th to the 12th week. The highest osteointegration level was detected for the implants coated with a biocomposite consisting of BG, HA and TCP. The results of the current study demonstrate an effectiveness of the GDD method to produce biocompatible coatings on Ti-based alloys. This provides excellent prerequisites towards the application and standardization of the GDD technology to manufacture bone implants for bone fixation and defect replacement, as well as the development of dental implants.     

Microstructure characterisation of ceramics via 2D and 3D X-ray refraction techniques

3D imaging techniques are very fashionable nowadays, and allow enormous progress in understanding ceramic microstructure, its evolution, and its link to mechanical, thermal, and transport properties. In this feature article, we report the use of a powerful, yet not so wide-spread, set of X-ray techniques based on refraction effects. X-ray refraction allows determining internal specific surface (surface per unit volume) in a non-destructive fashion, position and orientation sensitive, and with a nanometric detectability. While the techniques are limited by the X-ray absorption of the material under investigation, we demonstrate showcases of ceramics and composite materials, where understanding of process parameter influence or simply of microstructural parameters could be achieved in a way unrivalled even by high-resolution techniques such as electron microscopy or computed tomography.     

From bulk to cellular structures: A review on ceramic/graphene filler composites

A revision on ceramic/graphene composites is presented. The more representative results for a wide number of bulk composites are compared, making special emphasis on their mechanical (fracture toughness, strength) and elastic properties, along with wear and friction topics. The electrical functionality boosted by the contacted graphene network is critically assessed for conducting and dielectric ceramic matrices. Regarding thermal transport, the enhancement or depletion of thermal conductivity is reviewed for different materials and specific orientations. Furthermore, new developments on layered materials and coatings, as well as on three-dimensional cellular composites, which certainly widen the scope of applications for this remarkable group of ceramic materials, are looked over.