Journal of the European Ceramic Society 41 (2021) 93–100

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Journal of the European Ceramic Society

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jeurceramsoc

Effect of heat treatment on the microstructure and strength of yttrium

silicate matrix-modified SiCf/SiC composites
Fang He, Yongsheng Liu *, Jingxin Li, Binghui Zhang, Ning Dong, Yejie Cao, Jing Wang *
Science and Technology on Thermostructural Composite Materials Laboratory, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi’an, Shaanxi, 710072, China

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: Yttrium silicate was introduced into the matrix of SiCf/SiC composites via the slurry impregnation and reactive
Yttrium silicate chemical vapor infiltration (RCVI) methods to improve the water and oxygen corrosion resistance of the modified
Matrix composite materials. The effects of heat treatment on the modified matrix and strength of the composites were
SiCf/SiC composite
systematically investigated. The results showed that the modified matrix was composed of a mixture of yttrium
Strength
Heat treatment
monosilicate, yttrium disilicate, and silicon carbide. The modified yttrium silicate matrix (named Y-Si-O matrix)
and the silicon carbide matrix were laminated and well combined. After heat treatment, the amount of Y-Si-O in
the mixed matrix increased. The modified composites with yttrium silicate had a similar flexural strength as SiCf/
SiC composites (~400 MPa). After treated at 1000 ◦ C – 1300 ◦ C, the strength of the modified composites
increased by 17 %–26 %. The highest strength was measured for composites treated at 1200 ◦ C.

1. Introduction
SiCf/SiC composites have been widely used in the aviation field in
the past few decades as the lining of the combustion chamber and the
high-pressure turbine shroud ring and are one of the most promising
structural materials for use in the hot sections of turbine engines [1–4].
However, the mechanical properties of these composites may degrade
due to the reaction of SiC with oxygen and moisture in the combustion
chamber [5–7]. Environmental barrier coatings (EBCs) developed for
fourth generation materials are one of the most effective ways to
improve the water and oxygen resistance of SiCf/SiC composites. Rare
earth silicates have been extensively studied as third generation EBCs.
Yttrium silicate is a candidate third generation coating material for
SiCf/SiC composites with a high melting point, low volatilization rate,
low oxygen permeability, and low coefficient of linear expansion
[8–12]. The coefficient of thermal expansion of γ-Y2Si2O7 is
3.9 × 10− 6 K-1, which is close to the average coefficient of thermal
expansion of SiC matrix of 4.6 × 10− 6 K-1 [10,11]. Yttrium silicate
coatings have been prepared using a variety of methods, including
solid-state reactions, calcination of sol-gel precursors, hydrothermal
processing, hot isostatic pressing, sintering of a slurry coating, plasma
spraying, in-situ formation, and a hydrothermal electrodeposition
method [13–19].
However, such coatings generally fall off from the composites during
use in hot and humid environments due to volume shrinkage of the
coating and the formation of surface wrinkles, pores, cracks, and other
defects. This limitation affects the service life of the composites in many
environments. To overcome this limitation, applying yttrium silicate to
the composite interface and matrix has been proposed. For example,
Boakye et al. and Mogilevsky et al. [20–23] successively applied yttrium
silicate to the interface and matrix of mini-composites and verified the
feasibility of the approach by measuring material properties such as the
modulus, hardness, and thermal expansion of the composites. In some
cases, LiNO3 or LiYO2 were added to aid in the formation of β-RE2Si2O7,
γ-RE2Si2O7 [14,20]. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), differential
thermal analysis (DTA) and X-ray diffraction were performed on
heat-treated SiO2/Y(OH)3 samples [14,20–24]. These measurements
revealed that the β-RE2Si2O7 polymorph formed at relatively low tem­
peratures of 930− 950 ◦ C and coexisted with LiNO3 without first forming
the intermediate α-RE2Si2O7. The β-RE2Si2O7 formed from the α-poly­
morph at temperatures as high as 1300 ◦ C without LiNO3. LiYO2 pro­
moted the reaction between Y2O3 and SiO2 by forming a LiYO2-SiO2
liquid at 1225 ◦ C, and the rapid transport at grain boundaries lowered
the reaction temperature and time.
Prior research on the thermodynamics and preparation of yttrium
silicate by chemical vapor deposition has been performed, the process
parameters were optimized, and yttrium silicate ceramics were prepared
successfully [25].

* Corresponding authors.
E-mail addresses: yongshengliu@nwpu.edu.cn (Y. Liu), wangjing1@nwpu.edu.cn (J. Wang).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeurceramsoc.2021.09.031
Received 20 May 2021; Received in revised form 10 September 2021; Accepted 13 September 2021
Available online 17 September 2021
0955-2219/© 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
F. He et al.
Table 1
Chemical elements and mechanical properties of the SiC fiber.
Si C (wt. O Zr C/Si Tensile Modulus
(wt. %) (wt. (wt. (mole strength (GPa)
%) %) %) ratio) (GPa)
57.4 40.8 1.8 – 1.66 2.03 206
Fig. 1. X-ray diffraction patterns recorded from the modified SiCf/ SiC com­
posites with and without heat treatment (AS = as-received samples).
Silicon carbide is widely used in high temperature environments as a
structural material. However, strength of SiC fibers decreases rapidly
after heat treatment at temperatures higher than 1300 ◦ C for 10 h, even
in Hi-Nicalon™-S SiC fibers [24]. The decrease in strength seriously
affects engineering applications of SiCf/SiC, and it is necessary to study
the effects of heat treatment on the properties of ceramic composites.
Based on the above results, yttrium silicate was introduced into the
matrix of SiCf/SiC composites through dipping and the reactive chemi­
cal vapor infiltration (RCVI) methods in this paper. In the RCVI method,
the precursor gas reacts in the porous preform with a solid phase to form
another solid [26]. Moreover, the effect of heat treatment at different
temperatures on the modified matrix and strength of the composites was
systematically investigated.
2. Experimental procedures
A mixture containing polysiloxane and toluene was prepared, and
Y2O3 (50 nm) was added to the mixed solution to form a slurry with a
solids content of 20 wt%. The ratio of polysiloxane to Y2O3 in the slurry
was 1:1, and 1 wt% Li2CO3 was added to promote the formation of the
yttrium silicate phase at low temperatures.
Two-dimensional (2D) SiCf/SiC composites with a porosity of 25 %
were used in this study and chemical elements and mechanical prop­
erties of the SiC fiber (produced by Xiamen University, China) are shown
in Table 1. First, 2D preforms were fabricated from laminated silicon
carbide cloths. The laminated cloths were set into a fixed configuration
using graphite molds. Second, the BN interphase (ca. 500 nm in thick­
ness) was deposited on SiC fibers by CVD (650 ◦ C and 1 kPa) using
ammonia and boron trichloride precursors. Thirdly, matrix was infil­
trated at 1050 ◦ C for 300 h at a pressure of 5 kPa by using MTS with a
H2: MTS molar ratio of 10.
Specimens with sizes of 40 mm × 5 mm×3 mm were cut from the as-
prepared composites. The apparent density of porous SiCf/SiC compos­
ites was 1.7–1.8 g/cm3.
The slurry was introduced into the composites through vacuum and
pressure impregnation. The impregnated materials were dried in an
oven at 80 ◦ C for 12 h. The dried samples were hung in a CVD furnace
for chemical vapor deposition of SiC at 1050 ◦ C for 60 h. During this
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Journal of the European Ceramic Society 41 (2021) 93–100
process, Y2O3 and CH3SiCl3 reacted with the polysiloxane (PSO) to
generate yttrium silicate.
The impregnation and deposition processes described above were
repeated four times until the material was dense. The samples were heat
treated at temperatures between 1000 ◦ C and 1400 ◦ C for 10 h in an
argon atmosphere, and the influences of the different heat treatment
temperatures on the micro morphology and strength of the samples were
measured.
The phase composition and structure of the samples were charac­
terized using X-ray diffraction (XRD, D8 ADVANCE, Bruker, Germany).
The morphology of the deposited matrix was observed using field
emission scanning electron microscopy (SEM, Helios G4 CX, FEI, USA)
and transmission electron microscopy (TEM, Themis Z, FEI, USA).
Chemical bond and elemental composition were characterized by an X-
ray photoelectron spectrometer (XPS, Axis Supra, Kratos, U.K.).
The hardness and elastic modulus were measured using a Nano­
Indentor (TI980, Hysitron, U.S.) on the polished surface of the samples
with a 10 mN load. The three-point bending strength was determined
using a CMT4304 machine produced by Shenzhen SANS Material
Testing Co. Ltd. The sample size was 40 × 5×3 mm3 with an outer span
of 30 mm, and the loading speed during the measurement was 0.5 mm/
min according to the ASTM C1341 standard.
3. Results and discussion
3.1. Composition and phase analysis
The crystallized phases detected by X-ray diffraction of the modified
SiCf/SiC composites after heat treatment at different temperatures are
shown in Fig. 1. The modified matrix is mainly composed of SiC, Y2SiO5
and Y2Si2O7. The intensity of the Y-Si-O peaks in the untreated sample is
low, and the peaks are not obvious, indicating the Y-Si-O matrix has poor
crystallinity. The characteristic peaks corresponding to the Y-Si-O pha­
ses become more obvious as the heat treatment temperature increases.
The diffraction peaks from the β-Y2Si2O7 (2θ≈20 ◦ ) become prominent
in samples treated at temperatures of 1200 ◦ C and above. The diffraction
peaks from the Y2SiO5 phase are more obvious in samples treated at
temperatures above 1300 ◦ C, suggesting this phase is highly crystalline.
This may be attributed to the differences between the reaction rate and
the mass transfer rate. At approximately 1200 ◦ C, the mass transfer rate
is greater than or equal to the reaction rate, and because there were
sufficient amounts of the Y2O3 and SiO2 reactants, more Y2Si2O7 was
generated. As the temperature increases, the endothermic reaction rate
is greater than the mass transfer rate, and there were insufficient
amounts of the Y, Si, and O elemental reactants which instead favored
the synthesis of Y2SiO5. The amount of yttrium silicate continually in­
creases. The results in Table 2 show that there is almost no change in the
density and weight of the samples before and after heat treatment,
indicating that amount of yttrium silicate generated is balanced by the
consumption of the PSO and SiC.
The XPS analysis in Fig. 2 suggests that the bonds formed by the O
elements in the untreated sample are Y–O and Y-O-Si, and the Y–O
bonds account for 1/9 of the total number of O-bonds compared to Y-O-
Si. After heat treatment, the Y–O bonds disappear, and all O-bonds exist
as Y-O-Si. This result indicates that the amount of Y2O3 is extremely low
in samples treated above 1200 ◦ C. Because the low strength of the Y–O
bond affected the peak splitting in the XPS spectrum, the bonds formed
by the Y element are mainly Y-O-Si. The Y 3d electron energy peak
overlaps with the Si 2 s peak, possibly affected by the energy spectra of
the silicon, yttrium oxide and yttrium silicate [27,28]. Y-O-Si bonds
accounts for 11 %, 25 %, 27 % of the total binding energy, respectively.
The Y-Si-O content increases with increasing heat treatment tempera­
ture, which indicates an enrichment of this phase in the matrix. The Si
bonding is found to be mainly Si-C, Si-O-Y and Si-O with Si-C contents of
56 %, 55 %, and 51 %, respectively. The Si-O-Y content is 35 %, 27 %,
and 37 % for increasing heat treatment temperature, respectively, and
F. He et al. Journal of the European Ceramic Society 41 (2021) 93–100

Table 2
Changes in sample mass before (AS = as-received samples) and after heat treatment.
Heat treatment temperture (oC) AS 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400
3
Density(g/cm ) 2.53±0.05 2.56±0.09 2.57±0.10 2.58±0.04 2.59±0.17 2.55±0.24
Weight(g) 1.71±0.15 1.69±0.26 1.64±0.16 1.66±0.25 1.68±0.18 1.66±0.29

Fig. 2. High resolution XPS spectra (AS = as-received samples).

Fig. 3. Micromorphology images of the SiCf/SiC samples modified by yttrium silicate matrix (SiCf/SiC-YS) after heat treatment at different temperatures (a, b As-
received c, d 1100 ◦ C e, f 1200 ◦ C g, h 1300 ◦ C i, j 1400 ◦ C).

Fig. 4. Micromorphology images of the BN interface, Y-Si-O matrix and SiC matrix after heat treatment at different temperatures (a As-received, b 1100 ◦ C,
c 1200 ◦ C).

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F. He et al. Journal of the European Ceramic Society 41 (2021) 93–100

Fig. 5. Schematic diagram of SiCf/SiC-YS samples.

Fig. 6. Micromorphology and crystal structure images of the SiCf/SiC-YS sample after heat treatment at 1200 ◦ C.

Fig. 7. High-resolution image of the SiCf/SiC-YS sample after heat treatment

at 1200 ◦ C.
Si-O content is 10 %, 18 %, and 12 %, respectively. The changes in the
relative chemical contents in the three samples indicate that as the
temperature rose to 1200 ◦ C, the reaction rate was lower than the mass
transfer rate, and the SiO2 could not fully participate in the reaction. As a
result, most of the SiO2 content remained, the Si-O content increases,
and the Si-O-Y content is relatively low. At treatment temperatures
Fig. 8. Load-depth curves obtained by nanoindentation of the SiC and Y-Si-O in
modified composites.
higher than 1200 ◦ C, the reaction rate increased, and SiO2 was
consumed, leading to a decrease in the Si-O content and an increase in
the Si-O-Y content. In general, there is little difference in the total
amount of Si-C in the different samples, which is consistent with the XRD

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F. He et al.
Table 3
Elastic modulus and hardness of SiC and Y-Si-O in the modified composites.
matrix Elastic modulus (GPa) Hardness (GPa)
SiC 327 ± 27 30.4 ± 7.1
Y-Si-O 134 ± 26 5.2 ± 1.0
results.
3.2. Microscopic morphology
Images of the micro morphology in Fig. 3a-b show that the interiors
of the fiber bundles are mostly filled with the silicon carbide matrix. The
Y-Si-O matrix is located between the fiber bundles and its presence in­
creases progressively towards the outside. There are microcracks, pits,
and holes in the Y-Si-O matrix, which is assumed to be the result of the
SiCH3Cl3, Y2O3 and PSO reacting to form yttrium silicate. A partial
enlargement of the image of the Y-Si-O matrix reveals that it is not
entirely Y-Si-O, and a mixture of Y-Si-O particles, silicon carbide matrix,
and incompletely reacted SiO2 are present. Temperatures of
1000 ◦ C – 1100 ◦ C are close to the preparation temperature of the
modified composite material and part of the thermal stress was released,
as a result, almost no gaps or cracks are present between the Y-Si-O
matrix and the silicon carbide matrix. Large pits appear in the Y-Si-O
matrix, indicating that the heat treatment led to the reaction of residual
SiO2, and the process had no effect on the silicon carbide matrix. The Y-
Si-O particles increase in size and begin to connect to each other (Fig. 3c-
d). Fig. 3e-f shows that after heat treatment at 1200 ◦ C, the Y-Si-O
particles gradually form a connected, dense matrix. Obviously, as tem­
perature increases above 1000 ◦ C to 1200 ◦ C, the Y-Si-O matrix gradu­
ally becomes denser, which is consistent with the XRD and XPS test
results for samples with heat treatment temperatures of
1300 ◦ C – 1400 ◦ C (Fig. 3g-j). The dispersed SiC phase seen in the
original untreated materials are replaced with holes and pits in the
treated materials. This phenomenon is more obvious after heat treat­
ment at a temperature of 1400 ◦ C, because during the high temperature
heat treatment, Y2SiO5 reacted with SiC and SiO2 to form the Y2Si2O7
phase and consumed the SiC.
A partial enlarged view of the fiber (Fig. 4a) shows that the inter­
phase of the composites was intact during the preparation process and
was not corroded by the reactants. Fig. 4b-c shows the densification of
the matrix, in which the layered structure formed by the Y-Si-O matrix
Fig. 9. Stress-displacement curves (AS = as-received samples) measured for the SiCf/SiC-YS composites with and without heat treatment (a) and strength of the SiCf/
SiC-YS composites with and without heat treatment (b).
Table 4
Flexural modulus of the modified SiCf/SiC composite with and without heat treatment (AS = as-received samples).
Heat treatment temperture (oC) AS 1000
Flexural modulus (GPa) 85.8±7.9 87.3±5.3
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Journal of the European Ceramic Society 41 (2021) 93–100
and the silicon carbide matrix has a clear boundary and is well com­
bined, gradually filling the pores between the fiber bundles. The dis­
tribution of the structures can be seen in the schematic diagram (Fig. 5).
The boron nitride (BN) interphase and SiC matrix covered the fibers
within the composites, and the Y-Si-O matrix was reactively deposited
on the surface of the SiC matrix. During the repeated impregnation-
deposition process, Y-Si-O and silicon carbide matrix stacked to form a
dense composite material. Due to the gradient effect of the CVI method,
it is difficult to completely fill some of the large pores inside the matrix,
which leads to the formation of internal pores.
The sample prepared with a heat treatment temperature of 1200 ◦ C
has the highest strength, and the internal structure of the modified
matrix of this sample is observed to further explore the mechanism of
action (Fig. 6). The modified matrix contains triclinic yttrium mono­
silicate grains, polycrystals composed of yttrium monosilicate and
yttrium disilicate (Y-Si-O matrix), and SiC matrix. The presence of the
polycrystals may lead to the deflection of cracks along the grain
boundary and reduce the thermal stress and compressive stress damage
in the sample. The Y-Si-O matrix is either dispersed in the silicon carbide
matrix or deposited as a thin layer within the silicon carbide matrix. This
phenomenon is attributed to the fact that during the process, silicon
dioxide and yttrium oxide react to form an yttrium silicate layer, and as
the deposition progresses, yttrium silicate generation and silicon carbide
deposition proceed simultaneously. Part of the pores formed by the
decomposition of PSO are filled with deposited silicon carbide which
forms a dispersed multi-phase matrix. The thin Y-Si-O layer should be
helpful for blocking the penetration of oxygen and water. The diffraction
lattice pattern of the silicon carbide shows that there are stacking faults
in the silicon carbide matrix. The high-resolution image (Fig. 7) of the
junction between the yttrium monosilicate grains and the silicon carbide
crystals shows that the grain boundaries are disordered and well
combined.
3.3. Mechanical properties and fractography
The results in Fig. 8 and Table 3 indicate that the elastic modulus and
hardness of Y-Si-O are much lower than that of SiC matrix. The intro­
duction of Y-Si-O matrix reduces the modulus and hardness of the
composite matrix and could achieve better modulus matching and
effective load bearing capacity [29,30].
The three-point bending strength of the unmodified dense SiCf/SiC
1100 1200 1300 1400
99.0±8.5 90.5±6.3 118.2±8.4 78.9±9.5
F. He et al.
Fig. 10. Fractography photos of the SiCf/SiC-YS specimens with and without heat treatment (a-c As-received, d-f 1100 ◦ C, g-i 1200 ◦ C, j-l 1300 ◦ C, m-o 1400 ◦ C).
composite is about 400 MPa, which is close to the strength measured for
the modified composites (~420 MPa). Fig. 9 shows that as heat treat­
ment temperature increases from 1000 ◦ C to 1200 ◦ C, the density,
strength, and flexural modulus of the composites gradually increase.
Because of the differences in the coefficients of thermal expansion be­
tween SiC matrix, Y-Si-O matrix and SiC fibers, the fibers are subjected
to compressive stress, and the drawn length decreases. Increase of
amount of Y-Si-O matrix in the matrix after 1200 ◦ C heat treatment
realizes an effective load transfer between the denser matrix, and the
composite reaches the highest strength and has a lower flexural modulus
than sample treated at 1100 ◦ C. At heat treatment temperatures higher
than 1200 ◦ C, voids and cracks were generated due to the difference of
the CTE between the Y-Si-O substrate and the silicon carbide substrate,
which released part of the energy and increased the crack propagation
path. As a result, large area delamination could occur between the Y-Si-
O substrate and the silicon carbide substrate.
Ye Fang et al. [31] found that SiC crystallites in the fibers grew up
and the strength and modulus of SiC fiber decrease after heat treatment
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Journal of the European Ceramic Society 41 (2021) 93–100
at 1350 ◦ C for 2 h, causing the flexural strength and modulus of SiC/­
SiBCN to decrease after heat treatment at 1350 ◦ C, especially the flex­
ural strength retention rate is only 59.75 %. Although the density of the
composite heat-treated at 1300 ◦ C is high, the SiC crystallites in the fi­
bers grew up at high temperatures, which causes the fiber strength to
decrease with increasing temperature (especially above 1400 ◦ C). This is
also the main reason for the decrease in the strength (Fig. 9) and
modulus of the material after heat treatment at 1300 ◦ C – 1400 ◦ C
(Table 4).
Fibers in SiCf/SiC-YS samples were pulled out in the form of fiber
clusters after the three-point bending strength test. Fiber pull-outs near
the matrix are shorter than those near the center of the fiber bundle and
holes in the matrix (Fig. 10a-c). This is due to the large difference in the
thermal expansion coefficients of the fibers and the α-Y2Si2O7 in the
matrix. The fibers close to the matrix were subjected to a greater
compressive stress, and the fiber pull-outs are shorter. Part of the stress
on the fibers near the holes was released by the pores at the crack tip
after the matrix broke, the relative compressive stress weakened, and
F. He et al.
fibers pull-out length is longer.
There are tiny cracks that penetrated through the entire matrix of the
modified samples heat treated at 1100 ◦ C after the samples were stressed
and fractured (Fig.10d–f). It is believed that the yttrium silicate is a
“quasi-plastic” material with dislocations [21], and cracks are more
likely to propagate in the Y-Si-O matrix. The fiber-matrix debonding
length Ld [27] of the instantaneous failure of the fiber-toughened com­
posite material was calculated using formula (1), in which the fibers in
the modified composites are surrounded by the SiC matrix and assumed
to have the same R value as the fiber bundle. An increase in the amount
of the Y-Si-O phase results in a greater compressive stress on the entire
fiber, and as a result, the interface debonding energy Γi increases and the
fiber pull-outs length generally become shorter.
[ ]
2σf rf 1
−
βEf rf2
− 2Ef rf Г i
β 16Gf
Ld = (1)
4Ef Г i − rf σ2f
√̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅̅
1 2Gm
β= / (2)
rf Ef ln(R rf )
Here Гi and Гf, refer to the energy at which interface debonding and fiber
breakage begin to occur, respectively; Gm refers to the matrix shear
modulus; rf refers to the fiber radius; Ef refers to the fiber modulus; and R
refers to the thickness of the matrix around the fibers in the unidirec­
tional composite in question.
Not only are cracks present through the entire yttrium silicate ma­
trix, but transverse cracks between the yttrium silicate and the silicon
carbide layers also are present after the samples broke (Fig. 10g–i), and
the length of fiber pull-outs increases. One reason for this phenomenon
is that the mismatch in the thermal expansion of the substrates caused
microcracks to form between the substrates. The cracks then extended
from the Y-Si-O substrate to the interface of the Y-Si-O and silicon car­
bide substrates and expanded along the different matrix bonding di­
rections. Another reason is that part of α-Y2Si2O7 phase was transformed
into the β-Y2Si2O7 phase at 1200 ◦ C. Compared with α-Y2Si2O7, the
coefficient of thermal expansion of the β-Y2Si2O7 is closer to that of the
SiC. The compressive stress of the fiber decreased, and the pull-outs
length increases. The expansion and deflection of cracks in the “quasi-
plastic” yttrium silicate matrix or between the multiphase matrix are
beneficial as it released the residual thermal stress and reduced the stress
on the fibers. The transformation of the yttrium silicate phase also
reduced the mismatch of the thermal expansion coefficients between the
multiple phases. The combined action of the above conditions is
conducive for the strengthening and toughening of the composites.
Samples after heat treatment at 1400 ◦ C have more matrix delami­
nation and more fiber pullout than the 1300 ◦ C heat-treated samples
(Fig. 10j-o). This is attributed to the microcracks caused by the thermal
expansion mismatch between the substrates and the holes that formed
during the conversion of Y2SiO5 to Y2Si2O7. The holes provide a
deflection path for the cracks to expand in the substrate. In addition, the
Y-Si-O matrix is softer than the silicon carbide, which is more conducive
to the deflection of cracks [21]. The transformation of the internal
crystals in the matrix weakened the thermal mismatch between the
matrix and the fibers, and the delamination and fracture of the matrix
weakened its bond to the fibers and realized the effective bearing and
fiber pull out.
4. Conclusions
Yttrium silicate was introduced into the matrix and coating of silicon
carbide composites using the slurry impregnation and RCVI methods,
and the effect of heat treatment at different temperatures on the modi­
fied matrix and the strength of composites was investigated. The main
results are as follows:
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Journal of the European Ceramic Society 41 (2021) 93–100
1) The introduced Y-Si-O matrix and silicon carbide matrix formed a
laminated structure, and the Y-Si-O matrix is composed of a mixture
of yttrium monosilicate, yttrium disilicate, and silicon carbide.
2) The densities (~2.5 g/cm3) and strengths (~400 MPa) of the modi­
fied composites are similar to that of the unmodified dense com­
posite. Heat treatment has little effect on the density and weight of
the samples, and any changes are within the uncertainty of the
measurement. The Y-Si-O matrix with the lower elastic modulus and
hardness ensures a better match in properties between the matrix
and fibers in the composites.
3) The strength, density, and flexural modulus of the modified com­
posites increase with an increase in the heat treatment temperature
from 1000 ◦ C to 1200 ◦ C. In particular, the strength reaches a
maximum value after sample treatment at 1200 ◦ C, and the strength
increased by 26 % compared with that of the untreated material.
Heat treatment at temperatures higher than 1300 ◦ C causes a sig­
nificant decrease in material strength.
Declaration of Competing Interest
The authors report no declarations of interest.
Acknowledgements
This work is supported by Chinese National Foundation for Natural
Sciences under Contracts (No. 92060202, No. 51972269, No. 51872229,
No. 51672217), the Creative Research Foundation of the Science and
Technology on Thermostructural Composite Materials Laboratory
(JCKYS2020607001), State Key Laboratory of Advanced Technology for
Materials Synthesis and Processing, China (Wuhan University of Tech­
nology, 2021-KF-10) and the Nature Science Foundation of Shaanxi (No.
2020JQ-169).
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