Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Ceramics International
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/ceramint

Review on development of metal/ceramic interpenetrating phase

composites and critical analysis of their properties
Navya Kota, Munagala Sai Charan, Tapas Laha, Siddhartha Roy *
Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur, Kharagpur, 721302, India

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

Keywords: Metal/ceramic composites are in high demand in several industries because of their superior thermo-mechanical
a) Interpenetrating metal/ceramic composites properties. Among various composite types, the interpenetrating phase composites (IPCs) with percolating
b) Processing metallic and ceramic phases offer manifold benefits, such as a good combination of strength, toughness, and
c) Porous ceramics
stiffness, very good thermal properties, excellent wear resistance, as well as the flexibility of microstructure and
d) Mechanical properties
e) Thermal properties
processing route selection, etc. The fabrication of metal/ceramic IPCs typically involves two steps - i) processing
f) Material property maps of an open porous ceramic body, and ii) infiltration of metallic melt in the pores to fabricate the IPC. Although
significant progress has been made in recent years for developing both porous ceramics and melt infiltration
methods, to the best of the knowledge of the authors, no review article summarizing all the aspects of processing
and properties of IPCs has been published till date. This review article is aimed at filling this gap. Starting with a
brief introduction about the current status and applications of IPCs, the various processing routes for fabricating
open porous ceramic preforms and melt infiltration techniques have been discussed. Subsequently, the data
available for various important physical, mechanical, and thermal properties for IPCs have been critically
analyzed to thoroughly understand their dependence on various structural and processing parameters. To
compare the properties of IPCs with other relevant materials, seven different Ashby material property maps have
been used, and the domains for IPCs have been created in them. For each map, the concept of material indices
has been employed to critically discuss how IPCs perform in relation to other material classes for various op­
timum design conditions. Finally, a detailed future outlook for further research on IPCs has been provided.

1. Introduction
Over the past several decades, metal matrix composites (MMC) have
evolved into versatile and robust engineering materials with immense
commercial viability in various markets. This transformation was made
possible by comprehensive research in materials development and in­
novations in sustainable manufacturing techniques over many years. In
2020, the global MMC market size accounted for 8395 metric tonnes,
estimated at USD 360 million, and was forecast to grow at a rate of 6.4%
compounded annually from 2020 to 2027 [1]. MMCs typically consist of
a ceramic reinforcement phase (SiC, Al2O3, B4C, TiC, graphite, NbC,
TaC, TiB2, and WC) and a metallic alloy (Al, Mg, Ni, Cu, Fe, and Ti)
[2–5]. The choice of metallic and ceramic materials is based on their
compatibility and the intended final properties. In MMCs, under
external loading conditions, an efficient load transfer occurs from a
relatively softer and ductile metallic phase to the stiffer and stronger
ceramic reinforcement [6,7]. The significant difference in physical,
mechanical, thermal, and electrical properties between the metallic and
the ceramic phases confers MMCs with a high degree of tailorability.
They exhibit high specific strength and stiffness together with good
fracture properties like toughness, fatigue, and impact resistance,
essential for structural and load-bearing applications. Their high ther­
mal conductivity and low coefficient of thermal expansion are often of
primary importance for thermal management applications [8,9]. They
also display a reasonable degree of electrical conductivity and resistance
to corrosion and erosion. MMCs are in high demand in the aerospace,
automotive, recreational, and infrastructure industries because of their
superior mechanical reliability and energy efficiency [10].
Based on the reinforcement architecture, metal/ceramic composites
are traditionally classified into various categories - particulate, short
fiber- or whisker-reinforced, continuous fiber-reinforced, and layered or
laminated composites [11]. The effect of reinforcement morphology on
macroscopic behavior for these composite types has been extensively
researched both experimentally and theoretically. The presence of

* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: siddhartha@metal.iitkgp.ac.in (S. Roy).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ceramint.2021.09.232
Received 29 July 2021; Received in revised form 11 September 2021; Accepted 22 September 2021
Available online 23 September 2021
0272-8842/© 2021 Elsevier Ltd and Techna Group S.r.l. All rights reserved.

Please cite this article as: Navya Kota, Ceramics International, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ceramint.2021.09.232
N. Kota et al.
ceramic particles in a metallic matrix results in higher strength, hard­
ness, and wear resistance in particulate composites [12,13]. However,
poor interfacial bonding, unnecessary reinforcement clustering, and the
formation of interfacial reaction products and internal voids may
significantly reduce the resulting composite properties. Short fiber
reinforced composites, although superior to their particulate reinforced
counterparts, their formability is usually inferior, and also, the isotropic
nature is mainly restricted to the plane of the fibers [14]. Maximum
property enhancement is obtained in continuous fiber-reinforced com­
posites [15,16]. However, difficulties during processing and ductility
and toughness constraints limit their use to somewhat exotic applica­
tions. Moreover, continuous fiber-reinforced composites exhibit rela­
tively high anisotropy, and the properties are deficient in the direction
transverse to the fiber direction. Layered composite systems have
garnered attention because the constituents are alternating layers
ranging from thicknesses of a few nm up to macroscopic laminates [17].
Compared to the particulate or fiber-reinforced composites,
metal-ceramic laminates are often relatively easy to produce, and the
elastic properties can readily be predicted using established
micro-mechanical models.
These conventional reinforcement architectures result in the
embedment of discrete and isolated phases discontinuously dispersed in
a matrix. Subsequently, the interconnectivity of the constituent phases
in composite materials was also considered. This has resulted in the
development of a newer class of composites, metal/ceramic inter­
penetrating phase composites (IPCs), also referred to as C4 and 3-3
composite materials [18,19]. In IPCs both phases are topologically
co-continuous and three-dimensionally percolating, exhibiting an
intertwining network structure [20–25], as shown schematically in
Fig. 1. Schematic image showing the structure of an interpenetrating phase composite.
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Fig. 1. The research and development of IPCs have gained momentum
mainly over the past couple of decades, primarily under the impetus of
simultaneous thrust in porous ceramics research [26,27], as metal/­
ceramic IPCs are commonly produced by infiltrating open-porous
ceramic preforms with metallic alloys. The continuous metallic
network ensures efficient crack-bridging, whereas the ceramic network
aids in the decentralization of stress and efficient load transfer and offers
dimensional stability at elevated temperatures. Thus, IPCs display an
excellent combination of strength and toughness, wear, fatigue resis­
tance [28,29], etc. They also possess lower CTE and thermal hysteresis
and are more resistant to thermal cycling damage in comparison to
particle reinforced composites [30–32].
All these shreds of evidence of property improvement make IPCs
potentially attractive candidates for creating multi-functional compos­
ites and structural systems for several applications. Some of the impor­
tant application fields where IPCs have already been proven to be
attractive are shown in Fig. 2. IPCs have a distinct potential for auto­
motive applications such as braking systems in automobiles and emer­
gency brake pads for high-speed trains [33], high-temperature [34,35],
and thermal management applications such as heat-sink base plate for
electronic packaging [36,37], high cycle fatigue applications [38],
vibration-damping applications for seismic resistant structures [39],
lightweight armors for defense applications [40,41], nuclear protective
materials and battery electrode materials [42,43], IC engine piston
crowns, cylinder liners, connecting rods, turbine compressors, etc. The
development of IPCs also presents incentives for assessing the theoret­
ical understanding of composites regarding the dependence of transport
properties on volume fraction and phase connectivity.
Due to their numerous potential benefits, IPCs are currently subject
N. Kota et al.
Fig. 2. Various application domains of metal/ceramic IPCs.
to significant research emphasis involving different material systems
[44–48]. A search was done in the Scopus database (www.scopus.com)
to count the number of yearly publications on IPCs and MMCs over
several years. The results are shown in Fig. 3. The plot shows that the
number of research publications on IPCs has increased steadily since the
publication of the first article in 1975 and the articles on the IPC today
represent about 10% of scientific publications on metal-ceramic com­
posites. Furthermore, a thorough literature review shows that although
the research field of IPCs has matured considerably over several years, a
comprehensive review article encompassing all the aspects of the pro­
cessing, microstructure, and properties is still lacking.
This article is aimed to fill this gap, and it presents an exhaustive
review of research articles published on IPCs consisting of only metallic/
intermetallic and ceramic phases as the constituents. The review consists
of three broad sections. In section 2, the various IPC processing-related
aspects are discussed. As the processing of IPC is a two-step process, the
Fig. 3. No. of research articles published each year on IPCs (source: Sco­
pus database).
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section has two parts. In the first part, the various processing routes
employed for fabricating porous ceramic preforms relevant for IPCs are
discussed, while the second part describes the different melt infiltration
techniques for fabricating IPCs. In section 3, various physical, mechan­
ical, and thermal properties of IPCs have been discussed individually
from the available research data. Wherever relevant, the compiled re­
sults have been compared with various micromechanical models for
composite materials. As one of the primary aims of this review is to
compare IPCs with other material classes (such as metals, ceramics, and
other composites), extensive use of the Ashby material property maps
and the concept of material indices have been employed in this section.
Finally, in section 4, some future research directions for further devel­
oping IPCs are proposed.
2. Overview of the processing techniques of metal/ceramic
interpenetrating phase composites
Several different routes for porous preform fabrication and melt
infiltration have been employed to date for fabricating metal/ceramic
IPCs. This section is divided into two parts – a review of the most
common processing routes for fabricating porous ceramic preforms for
IPCs is provided in section 2.1, while the different melt infiltration
techniques are discussed in section 2.2.
2.1. Processing routes of porous ceramic preforms
For successful melt infiltration to fabricate IPCs, the ceramic pre­
forms must be predominantly open porous in nature. According to
Shutov [49], open porous structures are characterized by either the
presence of discontinuous faces or the majority of the cell struts must
have a minimum of three sharing cells. Over the last decade, processing
methods for porous ceramics have matured significantly, resulting in
improved control of porous structures with large interconnected
macro-pores (400 nm–4 mm) and sufficiently strong struts without
cracks or other defects. These techniques include: freeze-casting
[50–52], use of sacrificial pore-forming agents [53,54], use of replica
templates [55,56], 3D ink-printing or robotic deposition [57,58],
gel-casting [59,60], partial sintering of ceramic powders [56,61], etc. In
the fabrication of IPCs, the 3-D penetration of the molten metal depends
upon the ceramic preform’s porous skeletal structure. Complete infil­
tration of porous ceramics with small pore size is difficult to realize even
under high pressure due to the ceramic preform’s strength limitations.
As a result, a well-designed ceramic preform with a uniform and inter­
connected pore structure is critical. Sub-micron pores, pore blockages,
or closed loops limit permeability and lead to incomplete infiltration,
while huge pores tend to decrease the mechanical properties of the
porous ceramic bodies. Therefore, it is advisable to choose a
manufacturing procedure according to the need for the final product’s
appropriate characteristics.
2.1.1. Freeze-casting
The freeze-casting technique, also referred to as the ice templating
process, is a versatile method to fabricate a wide range of open porous
ceramics, including silicon carbide [62–64], alumina [65,66],
yttria-stabilized zirconia [67,68], silica [69,70], silicon nitride [71,72],
boron carbide [73], etc. An exhaustive review of the processing of
freeze-cast porous ceramic structures is reported by Scotti et al. [50]. As
shown schematically in Fig. 4, the process involves preferential nucle­
ation and growth of ice crystals when a defined thermal gradient
(sub-zero temperature) is applied to freeze an aqueous ceramic slurry
directionally. As the continuous solvent crystals form and grow within
the slurry, they reject the suspended ceramic particles from the pro­
gressing solidification front so that the particles are entrapped in be­
tween the crystals by natural segregation. Once the solidification ends,
sublimation is performed under reduced pressure to convert the solidi­
fied solvent into the gaseous state. Correspondingly, a porous ceramic
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Fig. 4. Schematic diagram of the freeze casting technique: (a) Mold with a ceramic slurry, (b) Growing ice crystals, (c) Completely grown ice crystals, (d) Porous
structure after sublimation, and (e) Lamellar porous ceramic after sintering.

foam consisting of unidirectionally aligned macroporous channels,
which is a direct replica of the frozen solvent structure, results. Subse­
quent pressureless sintering ensures the porous ceramic structure pos­
sesses sufficient mechanical strength and integrity [51].
The porous ceramic bodies thus developed typically exhibit a
lamellar structure. The microstructural features of the porous bodies
depend upon the freeze-casting parameters. A faster cooling rate at a
lower freezing temperature results in a finer lamellar structure due to
the nucleation of more ice crystals [52,74,75]. Fig. 5 depicts typical
microstructures of the freeze-cast Si3N4 ceramic preform and the evo­
lution of the microstructure along the freezing direction. The freezing
conditions and ceramic content in the slurry are the primary variables
controlling the microstructural parameters such as the content,
morphology, and orientation of the final porosity. The choice of a suit­
able solvent is influenced by its freezing temperature range, fluid vis­
cosity, minimal solidification-related volume changes, and high
solid-state vapor pressure for ease of sublimation. Apart from water,
tert-butyl alcohol [76], liquid carbon dioxide [77], and camphene-based
slurries [65] are also used as solvents. Further addition of solidification
modifiers like glycerol and polystyrene can prove helpful in reducing the
viscosity and surface tension of the concentrated slurries and prevent
defect formation [78].
The advantages of the freeze-casting technique include easy sintering
without burning of any material and eco-friendly nature without
releasing any harmful toxic substances. The range of porous ceramics
produced by this method reveals that the fundamental principles that
dictate the porous structure formation depend more on physical than
chemical interactions, making the technique highly flexible. On the flip
side, freeze-cast porous ceramics often exhibit directional pore structure
and multi-modal pore size distribution. As a result, the ceramic foam
properties perpendicular to and parallel to the freezing directions can be
considerably different, which may result in significant anisotropy in the
final product.
Table 1 summarizes the processing parameters used in some of the
research works for fabricating porous ceramics via the freeze-casting
process.
2.1.2. Use of replica templates
Replica methods, often referred to as the lost mold process or
Schwartzwalder method [85], have been frequently utilized to produce
reticulated porous ceramics (RPCs) with large interconnected pores. The
process typically involves impregnating the ceramic slurry into a highly
porous replica template, generally made of organic sponges, until a thin
uniform ceramic layer is formed over the struts of the original cellular

Fig. 5. Combined image showing the effect of process parameters on the lamellar structure of porous Si3N4 ceramics fabricated via freeze-casting process. The left-
hand side SEM images show the evolution of the lamellar structure parallel to the freezing direction with distance from the cold plate. The bottom images show the
micro CT images of the porous preform at different heights from the cold plate. The two plots show the variation of the measured lamella spacing and lamella width
with distance from the cold plate (image courtesy Dr. Karl Günter Schell, IAM-KWT, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Germany).

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Table 1 significantly reducing the mechanical properties of the final porous

Table summarizing some of the research works on porous ceramics using the ceramic. Several treatments such as re-coating or re-infiltration and
freeze-casting technique. slurry vacuum degassing could be performed to increase the slurry’s
Ceramic Solvent Cooling conditions Sintering Ref adherence or wettability to minimize the possibility of cracking during
material (◦ C) temperature (◦ C) the pyrolysis stage [53,88]. In some cases, vacuum impregnation is
SiC Water − 30 to − 196 1900 [79] employed to densify the struts in their pre-sintered form [89–91].
SiC Water − 10 1200 [80] Ref. [92] fabricated SiC reticulated porous ceramics with varied strut
TiC Water − 20 1500 [81] section geometries using polymer templates of different strut morphol­
YSZ Water − 18 1250–1550 [68]
ogies. [93] produced macroporous reticular Al2O3 foams of varied pore
Al2O3 TBA-Water − 20 1500 [82]
Al2O3 DPM-Water − 30 1600 [83] size distribution and a high specific surface area. Several porous SiC
Si3N4 Water Liquid N2 1700 [72] ceramics have also been developed by substituting the ceramic sus­
temperature pension with preceramic polymer solutions [94–99]. The generalized
Si3N4 Water − 60 1700 [84] process flow chart, along with the schematic, is given in Fig. 8.
Silicate TBA-Water − 40 Curing at 20 [76]
cement
This method offers better flexibility and control than the traditional
Al2O3 Naphthalene- Room 1500 [65] Schwartzwalder method. The possibility of obtaining crack-free struts is
Camphor temperature, − 17, mainly attributed to the increased wetting on the polymeric sponge and
− 196 the partial melting of the cross-linked polymer during pyrolysis [96,97].
SiO2 TBA − 50 1250 [70]
To facilitate the infiltration process, [98] added bentonite to the slurry
used for coating the polyurethane sponge template. It was also found
structure. The impregnated sponge body is then passed through rollers that with an increase in slurry viscosity, the SiC content increased,
to drain the surplus slurry and maintain the ceramic content in the leading to a decrease in the cell size and an increase in the strut
infiltrated body. The rheology of the impregnating ceramic slurry, its thickness.
adhesion with the organic sponge replica, and the cell size of the replica Natural porous ceramics, also known as biomorphic ceramics or eco-
are the most critical parameters at this stage. The ceramic-coated tem­ ceramics, such as woods, have also attracted increased attention to be
plate is subsequently dried and pyrolyzed through careful heating to used as replica templates because of their low-cost, eco-friendly nature,
decompose or burn out the organic templates. The ceramic layers are and complex shape capabilities [100,101]. Carbonaceous preforms with
subsequently sintered at high temperatures in an appropriate atmo­ 3-D interconnected porosities are produced by slow carbonizing of
sphere to obtain reticulated ceramic foams with the same morphology as natural wood, i.e., ultrasonically impregnating it with a preceramic
that of the original cellular template [85]. A process flowchart polymer, a thermosetting resin like phenol or furan, which then trans­
mentioning the sequential steps, along with the schematic representa­ forms into glassy carbon. Such preforms can be infiltrated at elevated
tion of the progressive structure evolution during foam fabrication, is temperatures with molten Si melt, Si and SiO vapor, or organosilicon
shown in Fig. 6. compounds such as CH3SiCl3, where silicon reacts at the carbon surface
The homogeneous open porous templates are selected based on their to form porous SiC [102–104]. Ceramic components with distinct
shape-recovering ability and their flexibility to be used for a wide va­ anisotropic pore structures can be made from a wide range of wood
riety of ceramic suspensions. Several synthetic and natural open porous types such as Jelutong, Beech wood (hardwood), and Pine (softwood).
structures, such as polyurethane sponges, wood, corals, etc., can be used [105] prepared light-weight porous SiC ceramics (35.5–54.5 vol%) by
as templates [53,55,86]. molten Si infiltration of pyrolyzed dicotyledonous woods derived from
The success of this method can be attributed mainly to its simplicity local origin trees of mango, jackfruit, and teak. Since wood structures
and flexibility. The method’s versatility stems in part from the fact that it may have cell sizes as small as a few micrometres, wood-derived porous
can be applied to any ceramic material that can be adequately dispersed ceramics have pore sizes that are much smaller (usually ranging from 10
into a slurry. This method produces open porous ceramics with poros­ to 300 μm) than those achieved using the synthetic polymer replicas.
ities ranging from 40 to 95 vol%, consisting of highly interconnected The struts of the wood-derived porous ceramic structures might contain
pores with sizes ranging from 200 μm to 3 mm (Fig. 7). The high degree flaws generated during the pyrolysis of residual carbon in oxidizing
of pore interconnectivity also improves melt permeability. However, environments, which degrade their mechanical properties especially at
owing to the difficulty of impregnating organic sponges with excessively high porosity levels. This can be minimized only if the carbonaceous
thin cells, the minimum pore size of replica-derived porous ceramics is preform is fully transformed into ceramic phase. Another disadvantage
limited to around 200 μm. One drawback of this method is that the of this method is the added costs of several time-consuming steps
reticulated structure’s struts sometimes crack during the pyrolysis step, involved. Porous biomorphic Si3N4 was fabricated from a natural sea
sponge using the replication technique in [106]. The process involves
infiltration of the sponges with a Si-containing suspension and subse­
quent heating to eliminate the bio-polymers to obtain porous silicon.
Nitridation treatment was then performed on the silicon preform to
produce highly porous (around 88 vol%) Si3N4, which retained the
initial sea sponge morphology.

2.1.3. Gel-casting technology

Fig. 6. Process flow chart along with the schematic for the fabrication of
ceramic foam using the replica method.
Gel-casting [60] is a wet processing technique for the fabrication of
high-quality complex-shaped macroporous ceramic bodies with 3-D
interconnected porosities [107–110]. In this technique, ceramic slur­
ries are prepared with organic monomers (such as methyl methacrylate,
methacrylic acid [111], butyl acrylate [112], acrylamide [113], etc.)
and cross-linkers. After mixing with initiator and catalyst, foam struc­
ture stabilization occurs through in-situ polymerization of organic
monomers. Subsequent drying of the gelled part is done under
controlled conditions to form a mechanically stable green body, and
finally, polymer burnout and sintering of the green bodies are performed

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Fig. 7. (a) Reticulated SiC foam, (b) SEM image of SiC foam indicating hollow strut, (c) SEM image of SiC foam strut surface indicating interconnecting porous
nature, and (d) XRD pattern of the SiC foam [87] (cited images have been reproduced with due permission from the publisher).

Fig. 8. Process flow chart along with the schematic for the fabrication of ceramic foam using preceramic polymer route.

in a furnace at appropriate temperatures [114,115]. The process flow
chart, along with the schematic for the fabrication of ceramic foam using
the gel-casting process, is shown in Fig. 9.
Gel-casting is highly effective for rapidly producing near-net-shaped
porous ceramics with high yields and reproducibility (Fig. 10). How­
ever, since the process involves toxic chemical reagents, it poses a threat
to the worker’s health and the environment upon prolonged exposure or
release. Also, the significant amount of drying shrinkage of green bodies
caused by the high surface tension of water (72.1 mN/m) during
aqueous gel-casting limits its usage to manufacturing porous ceramics
with a high degree of porosity. Therefore, non-aqueous gel-casting with
organic solvents with lower surface tension, such as tert-butyl alcohol
and ethylene glycol, can also be employed [116–118]. Gel-casting has
also been used in combination with appropriate amounts of sacrificial
pore-forming agents (PFA) such as PMMA, gas-filled thermally
expandable microspheres, potato starch, etc. [115,119].
Porous Si3N4 foams were produced by gel-casting followed by sin­
tering under N2 gas pressure in [116]. [121] fabricated porous YSZ
(52–76 vol%) by tert-butyl alcohol (TBA)-based gel-casting technique.
[118] prepared highly porous SiC ceramics by ethylene glycol-based

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N. Kota et al.
Fig. 9. Process flow chart along with the schematic for the fabrication of ceramic foam using the gel-casting technique.
Fig. 10. SEM micrographs of 27% dense gel-cast alumina foam with 200 μm average cell size [120] (cited images have been reproduced with due permission from
the publisher).
gel-casting method. It was found that the ethylene glycol-based gels
exhibited an excellent gelation behavior with rapid polymerization.
Also, unlike most organic solvents, where precipitation polymerization
resulted in low green body strength, in this case, rapid solution poly­
merization led to the increased strength of green bodies. [122] produced
highly porous SiC ceramics by gel-casting technology using suspension
emulsions of aqueous cyclohexane. Porous alumina was prepared by a
similar gel-casting method combined with the suspension emulsification
process in [123]. [124] developed porous YSZ ceramics using TBA sol­
vent for suspension formation during gel-casting along with PMMA
microspheres as PFAs. [125] successfully prepared porous Si3N4 ce­
ramics employing aqueous gel-casting and the addition of Si3N4
poly-hollow microspheres as PFAs. [111] utilized iso-butane gas-filled
co-polymeric microspheres as PFAs combined with a gel-casting process
to produce complex-shaped microporous alumina ceramics. The process
involved a temperature-induced expansion of the microspheres before
the polymerization step.
Instead of conventional gel-casting, direct foaming is also employed
in combination with gel-casting, i.e., foam-gel-casting, to produce
highly porous ceramic bodies [126,127]. The direct foaming process
involves the foaming of a ceramic suspension through the direct incor­
poration of gas or air bubbles by vigorous mechanical agitation or stir­
ring, which are then stabilized by the addition of surfactants. This is
followed by foam structure stabilization through in-situ polymerization,
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Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx
subsequent drying of the gelled part to form a green body, and finally,
polymer burnout and sintering of the green bodies to give rise to porous
ceramics. The amount of gas incorporated into the ceramic slurry during
the foaming process affects the overall porosity of the porous ceramics.
By optimizing the foam stability and setting kinetics, pore sizes in the
range of 35 μm to 1.2 mm and porosities in the range of 40–97 vol% can
be obtained using foam-gel-casting. Also, this method generates porous
structures with nearly flaw-less struts and hence marked improvement
in mechanical properties.
Preceramic polymer suspensions are also utilized instead of ceramic
slurries in the direct foaming method [128]. Open macroporous SiC
foams (59–85 vol%) were fabricated from polycarbosilane preceramic
polymer and a chemical blowing agent (azodicarbonamide) under N2
gas pressure in [129]. However, using this foam-gel-casting technique, it
is difficult to produce porous ceramics with porosity greater than 90%.
Porous mullite ceramics with an open porosity up to 92.9 vol% were
fabricated by solidifying an Al2O3 gel mixed with SiO2, followed by the
sublimation of ice crystals under a low pressure [130]. A novel in-situ
foam-gel-casting-freeze-drying technique was also used to fabricate
highly porous (92.2–95.8 vol%) Y2SiO5 ceramics in [131].
2.1.4. Use of sacrificial pore-forming agents (PFA)
A frequently used method for producing porous ceramics with a high
vol% of open porosity is through the pyrolysis of sacrificial PFAs that are
N. Kota et al. Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx

homogeneously dispersed into a continuous matrix of ceramic powder

particles. The added pore formers burn off by evaporation or sublima­
tion during the pyrolyzing step, before or during sintering, leaving
behind a desired pore profile in the matrix; the generalized process flow
chart along with the schematic is given in Fig. 11.
A wide variety of PFAs has been used: carbon fibers [132], cellulose
fibers [133], starch [134], polypropylene (PP) and polymethyl meth­
acrylate (PMMA) [135], several types of organic waxes [136], and soft
metals (including tin, indium, bismuth, etc.) [132]. The selection of
appropriate PFA is primarily essential to control the porous architecture
of the ceramic body. It should get readily mixed with ceramic powder,
burn out at a relatively low temperature, has a low modulus of elasticity,
low CTE differential with the green ceramic matrix, and non-wetting
properties with respect to the green ceramic body. The porosity and
pore size ranges obtained with this method are reasonably large (20–90
vol% and 1–700 μm, respectively) since they are only determined by the
volume fraction and size of the PFA used. A critical challenge associated
with this approach is the release of a large amount of harmful gaseous
byproducts during pyrolysis. Moreover, excessive CTE mismatch be­
tween the organic PFAs and the ceramic phases can induce cracks in the
porous structure during pyrolysis. However, in contrast to the positive
morphology obtained from the replica template technique, since this
process produces porous ceramics with a negative replica of the original
sacrificial PFAs, the removal of the sacrificial PFA phase does not usually
generate defects in struts of the porous ceramic bodies, thereby
improving their mechanical strength. A schematic of a micro computed
tomography image of a porous SiC preform fabricated using polymer
wax as pore formers is given in Fig. 12.
Porous Al2O3 foams were fabricated by the sacrificial pyrolysis of
cellulose fibers as PFAs in [133,137,138]. The ceramic foams had both Fig. 12. Micro-computed tomography image of a porous SiC preform fabri­
micropores inside the walls and a large network of inter-connected cated using polymer wax as pore formers (unpublished result from the work­
macropores between the walls. [139] prepared open-porous alumina group of co-authors).
(77.2 vol%) by impregnating ceramic slurry into the openings of a
PMMA-derived template followed by pyrolysis to remove the template from the green compact, resulting in the necessary 2-D channel struc­
and then sintering. [140–142] demonstrated the fabrication of highly ture, followed by pressureless sintering. The carbon fiber route was
porous SiC ceramics (44–77 vol%) consisting of a duplex pore structure carried out by burning out the carbon fibers between 450 ◦ C and 630 ◦ C.
through carbothermal reduction of a polysiloxane-derived SiOC along The reaction product, i.e., CO2 escapes through the porosity of the green
with hollow PMMA microbeads as sacrificial PFAs. Mullite compact if the reaction is completed before the sintering of the powder
(3Al2O3⋅2SiO2) bonded porous SiC ceramics were produced by in-situ begins at 1550 ◦ C. In addition to the fabrication of randomly orientated
reaction bonding method using graphite as PFA [143]. SiC particles porous ceramics using sacrificial PFAs, it is also possible to produce
were bonded by mullite and high-temperature oxidation-derived SiO2. porous ceramics with highly oriented unidirectional pores by the addi­
[144] synthesized porous Si3N4 ceramics containing randomly oriented tion of an extrusion step to the process before burning and sintering. The
uniform rod-shaped pores using sacrificial organic whiskers of paste of ceramic powder containing fiber pore formers is molded using
phenol-formaldehyde resin. Non-stoichiometric TiC0.5 foams with an extruder, which induces the rearrangement of the fibers and aligns
visible 3-D interconnected porosity were fabricated by in-situ solid-state them in the extrusion die. Porous Al2O3 ceramics with unidirectionally
reaction between Ti powder particles and carbon black, using polyvinyl aligned pores have been fabricated by an extrusion process using carbon
butyral alcohol (PVB) as PFA in [145]. Two kinds of PFAs, namely a soft fibers [146], nylon fibers [147], and poly vinyl acetate [148] as the pore
tin-indium alloy and carbon fibers, were used to fabricate alumina formers. Further, unidirectional porous mullite ceramics have been
preforms with 2D regular channels in [132]. The soft metal route was fabricated using rayon fibers [149,150]. Table 2 summarizes some
achieved by using centrifugal forces to expel the sacrificial molten metal

Fig. 11. Process flow chart along with the schematic for the fabrication of ceramic foam using sacrificial pore formers.

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N. Kota et al. Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx

Table 2 chemical synthesis, also called reaction bonding [165,166]. Such reac­
Summary of research carried out on porous ceramics synthesized using PFAs. tively generated ceramic foams are different from the starting materials,
Porous PFA Porosity Sintering Ref which are thermodynamically compatible with each other. Table 3
ceramic (vol%) parameters summarizes the research on porous ceramics prepared by partial sin­
Al2O3 Waste coffee grounds 35–54 1500 ◦ C, 2 h [61] tering of ceramics through powder metallurgy.
(0–50 wt%),
Si3N4 Naphthalene (5–30 wt%) 40–66 1700–1850 ◦ C, 1 [151] 2.1.6. 3-D printing or additive manufacturing
MPa N2, 2 h During the past decade, rapid prototyping (RP) or solid free-form
Si3N4 Phosphoric acid (H3PO4) 42–63 1000–1200 ◦ C, [152]
N2, 2 h
fabrication (SFF) technologies based on 3-D printing methods have
SiC H3PO4 (5–30 wt%) 58.3–78.2 1200 ◦ C, 2 ◦ C/ [153] revolutionized the manufacturing processes with the inherent capability
min, 2 h to fabricate objects in virtually any shape, size, or morphology. Additive
Al2O3 Carbon black (0–30 wt 33–68 1550 ◦ C, 2 ◦ C/ [154] manufacturing (AM) is a highly customizable direct digital fabrication
%) min, 3 h
technology that involves precise layer-by-layer fabrication of three-
Al2O3 Polyvinylpyrrolidone 30–45 1500 ◦ C, 10 h, [155]
(PVP) (10–20 wt%) 3 ◦ C/min dimensional components. 3D CAD model of the component is first
YSZ PMMA 7.29–51.6 1550 ◦ C, 2 h, [156] made, and the actual fabrication takes place by adding successive layers
1 ◦ C/min of the materials with the desired composition on top of each other.
Al2O3 Rice Husk (5–40 wt%) 20–66 1700 ◦ C, 2 h [157] Complex 3-D porous ceramics with highly regular or periodic architec­
Al2O3 Carbonized rice husk 26.8–82.4 1600 ◦ C, 2 h, [158]
(0–30 wt%) 5 ◦ C/min
tures can be fabricated by several AM techniques such as fused filament
Al2O3 Starch 22–53 1570 ◦ C, 2 h, [134] fabrication (acronym FDM or FFF) [172,173], ink-jet printing
2 ◦ C/min [174–176], stereolithography (SLA) [177,178], selective laser melting
Al2O3 Corn starch (3–18 wt%) 46–64 1400–1700 ◦ C [159] (SLM) [179], etc. Compared to the conventional processing routes dis­
Si3N4 Potato starch (0–30 vol 52–66 1750 ◦ C, 5 h, [160]
cussed in the previous sub-sections, AM techniques offer better control
%) 10 ◦ C/h
Ti2AlC NaCl 40 1400 ◦ C, 4 h, Ar [161] of complex pore structures and interconnectivity because of improved
flexibility, efficiency, repeatability, and sustainability of the process [57,
180,181].
further research on porous ceramics synthesized using sacrificial PFAs. Robotic deposition of a colloidal Al2O3-5 vol% ZrO2 gel-based ink
was used to create an alumina tower structure with 3-D periodic cubic
2.1.5. Partial sintering of ceramic powders symmetry, consisting of 30 alternating 0/90 layers of parallel rods in
Homogeneous porous ceramic structures can be produced by ter­ [176]. The entire procedure was controlled by a custom-designed
minating the sintering of green powder compact before complete direct-write program (RoboCad 3.2). After the completion of assem­
densification, i.e., partial sintering. The pore size, morphology, distri­ bling the entire component, the tower structures were dried and sin­
bution, and microstructure of porous ceramics depend upon the sinter­ tered. The top view of a sintered Al2O3 tower is seen in Fig. 14a, while
ing parameters (temperature, pressure, time, atmosphere), size of the schematic illustrating the tower creation process can be seen in
starting powders, and the type and quantity of additives used. Porous Fig. 14b. The tower architecture is shown in Fig. 14c and d as a side view
bodies of Al2O3, SiC, Si3N4 have been produced by this method [162, and a 3-D schematic diagram, respectively.
163]. Typically, porous ceramic bodies with porosities below 60 vol% 3D interconnected honeycomb-like porous silica preforms were
can be fabricated through partial sintering of green bodies. Also, the prepared by the direct FFF process in [173]. 55 vol% fused SiO2 loaded
percentage of closed pores is relatively high, and so the preforms are in polypropylene (PP) based thermoplastic binder was used as feedstock
characterized by low pore connectivity. The process flow chart, along material for continuous filament extrusion and subsequent spooling.
with the schematic for the fabrication of ceramic foam using the partial Fused deposition of the extruded filaments was then performed at
sintering process, is shown in Fig. 13. 235οC, according to the CAD files given. Once the green porous ceramic
Porous ceramics have also been fabricated by pulse electric current parts were prepared, they were subjected to a binder removal and sin­
sintering (PECS), also known as spark plasma sintering (SPS) technique tering treatment.
[164]. The process involves rapid heating of ceramic powders up to a 3-D honeycomb porous mullite ceramic preforms have been fabri­
required temperature, generally in a graphite die, under externally cated by an indirect FFF process, a hybrid methodology that combines 3-
applied pressure. The electric discharge in the voids between the powder D printing of polymer inks with replication or lost mold approach [182].
particles gives rise to local resistance heating. The consolidation phase is A negative replica of the desired porous ceramic component is first
restricted to the initial stages of sintering to obtain relatively small neck designed and constructed as a preceramic polymer mold using the FFF
growth between the particles and retain significant porosity inside the
material. Also, highly homogeneous open porous ceramics can be suc­
cessfully prepared by combining partial sintering with in-situ solid-state Table 3
Summary of research carried out on porous ceramics prepared by partial sin­
tering of ceramic powders.
Porous ceramic Porosity (vol Sintering parameters Ref
%)

Al2O3 52 10 MPa, 1000 οC, 100 οC/min, 7 [162]

min, vacuum
SiC 34–42 1500-1800 οC, 2 h, Ar gas [163]
Diatomite (SiO2/ 40–52 16 MPa, 600–850 οC, 100 οC/min, [167]
Al2O3/Fe2O3) 3 min, vacuum
Si3N4 40–60 1600-1850 οC, 10–20 οC/min, 2 h, [168]
0.6 MPa, N2 gas atm.
Si3N4 20–40 1400-1700 οC, 0.1 MPa, N2 gas [169]
atm., 10 οC/min, 2 h
Si3N4 55.4–68.8 1500-1800 οC, 0.6 MPa, N2 gas [170]
atm., 7 οC/min, 2 h
Al2O3 60 10 οC/min, 30 min, 1100–1450 [171]
Fig. 13. Process flow chart along with the schematic for the fabrication of ο
C, air
ceramic foam using partial sintering.

9
N. Kota et al. Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx

Fig. 14. (a) Top view of the alumina tower fabricated by robotic deposition, (b) an idealized schematic illustrating the layering pattern, (c) side view of the tower
architecture, and (d) an idealized 3-D schematic [176] (cited images have been reproduced with due permission from the publisher).

technique, which is then impregnated with an aqueous ceramic slurry.
These are then subjected to a binder-removal and sintering treatment to
generate the porous ceramic preform. The polymeric mold design de­
termines the size, distribution, and connectivity of the pores in these 3-D
honeycomb structures. The major advantage of the indirect FFF method
is that it allows for a flexible design and fabrication of porous structures,
allowing for the simultaneous tailoring of both the macrostructures and
the microstructures (Fig. 15). Indirect FFF may also be used to create
non-uniform or functionally graded porous ceramics of varying size,
shape, and connectivity at different heights of the structure. [183] uti­
lized a similar hybrid methodology combining 3D printing with slurry
replication and reactive silicon infiltration to fabricate near-net-shaped
macroporous Si–SiC structures.
A schematic showing the summary plot of porosities and pore size
ranges of porous ceramic preforms for the processing routes discussed in
section 2 and the corresponding pore morphologies is given in Fig. 16.
2.2. Melt infiltration techniques
After the open porous ceramic preforms are made, the next step in
the fabrication of IPCs involves infiltrating the porous body with molten
alloy. Two primary variants of melt infiltration techniques are used for
this purpose: pressureless or capillarity-driven infiltration [184–186],
wherein the capillary action acts as the driving force for the melt to be
spontaneously drawn into the preforms, and pressure-assisted or forced
infiltration [36,187–191], wherein an external pressure is applied to
overcome insufficient wettability between liquid metal and ceramic
preform. Unless the melt has a near-zero wetting angle with the ceramic
preform material, an external pressure must be applied to push the melt
into the preform. It is advisable to choose an infiltration procedure

Fig. 15. Top view of (a) Porous mullite preforms having different pore shapes and (b) controlled-porosity mullite preforms having different shapes and sizes [182]
(cited images have been reproduced with due permission from the publisher).

10
N. Kota et al.
Fig. 16. Typical porosities and pore size ranges of porous ceramic preforms
achieved in different processing routes and their morphologies.
depending on the materials’ mechanical properties. Care must be taken
to avoid or minimize the different processing associated flaws during the
fabrication of IPCs by enhancing wettability, preventing unwanted
interfacial chemical reactions, and containing premature melt solidifi­
cation before or during preform infiltration [192].
2.2.1. Pressureless infiltration
Pressureless or gravity infiltration technique involves spontaneous
impregnation of molten metal into a macroporous ceramic preform in
the absence of any external force pressure (Fig. 17). While this is much
slower than pressure-assisted infiltration, the spontaneous infiltration
process could enable the economical fabrication of huge and complex-
shaped components [193]. Sufficient wetting interactions for promot­
ing self-permeation of the melt can be ensured by optimizing the fur­
nace’s temperature and gas atmosphere. The rate of molten metal
infiltration into porous ceramic preform is given by Darcy’s law.
υ=
k dp
μ dx
where the terms υ, k, μ, p and x are the flow rate, the permeability of the
porous ceramic preform, the viscosity of the liquid metal, capillary
pressure correlated with the porous structure of the preform and infil­
tration depth, respectively. One of the limitations of this process arises
from insufficient wettability of the ceramic preform by liquid metal,
which has a detrimental effect on the infiltration kinetics, which causes
unwanted interfacial reactions, leading to the formation of in­
termetallics [194]. Surface modification of the ceramic preforms
Fig. 17. Schematic diagram of the pressureless infiltration process.
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Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx
through coating technologies or passive oxidation [195,196] is one way
to enhance wetting and thereby suppress the interfacial reactions. Pre­
vious research on pressureless infiltration of aluminum alloys into
porous ceramic preforms such as Al2O3, SiC, etc. [197,198], also sug­
gests that it is possible to enhance the wettability between the metallic
and ceramic phases by the addition of Mg and Si to the Al alloy [199].
[200] demonstrated a method for spontaneous infiltration of Al–Mg
alloy into Al2O3 and SiC preforms in an N2 gas atmosphere, known as
PRIMEX™ process. In this process, the Mg in the molten alloy reacts
with the trapped N2 gas in the porous preform to form Mg3N2 at the
metal/ceramic interface. During the pressureless infiltration of molten
Al–Mg alloy, Al reacts with Mg3N2 to form AlN and Mg, ensuring better
preform wetting. This effective chemical reaction results in a pressure
drop in the porous preform, which increases the molten metal’s suction
and, as a result, the ease of melt infiltration. [201] found that the op­
timum content of Mg addition to the Al alloy was 4–8 wt% while that of
Si was 6–12 wt%, to promote wettability during the fabrication of SiC/Al
composites by pressureless infiltration. [202] investigated the optimum
conditions for spontaneous infiltration of Al alloy into a porous SiC
preform. It was reported that Al-13.5Si–9Mg alloy melt infiltrated into
porous SiC preform with a thin Si coating at 1235 οC in the presence of
ultra-pure N2 atmosphere spontaneously.
[203] fabricated Al(Mg)/Al2O3 IPCs through pressureless infiltration
of Al–Mg (2–10 wt% Mg) molten alloy into an 80 vol% porous gel-cast
Al2O3 ceramic preform at a temperature ≥910 οC in N2–Ar inert atmo­
sphere. The effect of the furnace atmosphere on the composite micro­
structure is depicted in Fig. 18. With just 25% nitrogen (Fig. 18a), the
pores in the ceramic foams were incompletely filled with the alloy,
whilst at ≥ 55% nitrogen, and above (Fig. 18b and c), the pores were
filled, and there was little residual porosity.
[120] used spontaneous infiltration to synthesize IPCs by infiltrating
Al (Mg) alloy melt into a variety of open-porous alumina, mullite, and
spinel-based preforms with spherical inter-connected porosity, prepared
by the gel-casting method. Fig. 19 shows typical SEM micrographs of
ceramic foam/Al–Mg alloy IPCs, with the metal phase appearing
brighter and the ceramic phase appearing darker. Despite the differences
in microstructural features, it can be seen that complete infiltration has
occurred in both types of preforms. No secondary phases were present in
these composites, but certain flaws in the metallic phase were detected
due to metal shrinkage during cooling. Al/SiC (67 vol%) IPCs were
produced by spontaneous infiltration of Al–15Si–10Mg molten alloy into
three dimensional porous SiC preforms through careful design of inter­
face by utilizing both excessive Si-content in the alloy and unoxidized or
pre-oxidized SiC foam [195,204,205]. [184,206] fabricated
Al–Mg–Si/SiC IPCs by spontaneous infiltration of a porous SiC honey­
comb preform, generated by extrusion and recrystallization, in a high
purity N2 atmosphere. IPCs were also successfully prepared by pres­
sureless infiltration of Al–Mg–Si alloy melt into Ni-coated SiC preforms
under vacuum at 900 ◦ C in [207]. The presence of Si in the melt was
found to suppress the formation of Al4C3 in the reaction layer. [208]
fabricated IPCs by pressureless infiltration of molten Al–13Si–9Mg alloy
into wood-derived porous SiC preforms under different atmospheres.
The resulting IPC microstructure retained the heterogeneous ortho­
rhombic symmetry of the starting wood-derived substance.
[209] prepared SiC3D/Al IPCs with different foam structures by
N. Kota et al.
Fig. 18. Optical micrographs of the Al2O3/Al–10Mg IPCs spontaneously infiltrated in (a) 25% N2, (b) 55% N2, and (c) 100% N2 (balance argon) [203] (cited images
have been reproduced with due permission from the publisher).
Fig. 19. SEM micrographs of IPCs made by spontaneous infiltration of Al–10Mg alloy in (a) Alumina foam, (b) Mullite foam, (c) and (d) Spinel foam [120] (cited
images have been reproduced with due permission from the publisher).
spontaneous infiltration of molten Al alloy into porous SiC preforms
under controlled temperatures of 900–950 οC for 2 h. TiCx/Cu–Cu4Ti
IPCs were synthesized by pressureless infiltration of molten Cu at 1200
ο
C into non-stoichiometric TiC0.5 porous preforms that were prepared by
in-situ solid-state reaction between Ti and carbon black, together with
using PVB as pore former [145]. Excellent wettability between Cu and
TiC0.5 assisted in spontaneous infiltration. It was observed that the
metallic phase of the IPC thus produced contained Cu and a new phase
Cu4Ti, which was formed by the reaction between TiC0.5 and Cu. [210]
fabricated SiC/Al7075 IPCs by pressureless infiltration technique. The
infiltration was carried out at 800 ◦ C to ensure the melt’s better fluidity.
Al–12Si–10Mg/Al2O3–ZrO2 interpenetrating composites with an initial
ceramic loading of 30 vol% and different Al2O3/ZrO2 weight ratios (1:9,
3:7, 5:5, 7:3 and 9:1) were prepared by freeze casting followed by
12
Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx
spontaneous infiltration in [211]. The resultant IPCs retained the
lamellar structure of the porous Al2O3–ZrO2 preforms. [80] fabricated
Al–Si–Mg/SiC lamellar IPCs by freeze-casting and pressureless infiltra­
tion. The molten Al–12Si–10Mg alloy spontaneously infiltrated into the
porous SiC preform with an average infiltration rate of 0.24 mm/min at
950 ◦ C in an N2 atmosphere. (Cu, Ni)/(75–86 vol%) TiB2 IPCs were
successfully fabricated by an indirect downward pressureless melt
infiltration at 1400–1500 ◦ C in [212].
Pressureless infiltration has also been performed under reactive
conditions. Reactive metal penetration (RMP), referred to by the trade
name ONNEX™ [33], is a low-cost reactive infiltration method for
manufacturing metal/ceramic IPCs, in the absence of an external pres­
sure [22,213–216]. It involves a liquid-phase displacement reaction, for
example, between aluminum and silica at 800–1200 ◦ C when a
N. Kota et al.
net-shaped pure silica glass precursor is immersed into a molten
aluminum bath. Since silica is thermodynamically unstable in the
presence of aluminum, it gets reduced by it, and alumina forms. The
ceramic precursor is chosen such that its density is significantly lower
than that of alumina so that upon transforming, a volumetric contraction
occurs. As a result, about 25% open volume is created in alumina in the
form of microscopic voids and cracks [217], which are subsequently
wetted and penetrated by the flowing melt. Thus, the molten metal
transgresses and has continued access to fresh precursors so that the
reaction can proceed through the whole ceramic body, i.e., until the
SiO2 phase is wholly consumed. The resultant Al2O3/Al interpenetrating
phase composite thus formed retains the shape and dimensions of the
silica precursor, except for an isotropic volume shrinkage of around 1%.
The silicon precipitated at the infiltration front forms an Al–Si alloy,
thereby further improving the wettability and the process kinetics.
Cordierite [218], mullite, and other silicate ceramics [219,220] can also
be used as precursor materials.
A comparative study on the fabrication of Al2O3/Al IPCs by reactive
melt penetration (RMP) using SiO2 preform and direct pressureless
infiltration into Al2O3 preforms was reported in [221]. To ensure
reasonable wetting conditions, Si and Mg doping was applied to the
aluminum alloy along with a constant supply of N2 gas. It has been found
out that the infiltration kinetics was better in the case of the RMP route
with an infiltration rate of about 0.6 mm/h against a rate of 0.35 mm/h
for the direct pressureless infiltration route. [173] fabricated Al/alu­
mina IPCs by in-situ pressureless reactive metal infiltration of molten
Al5052 alloy into porous silica preforms produced by the fused depo­
sition of ceramics (acronym FDC or FFF) process. The reactive infiltra­
tion was carried out at 1150 ◦ C for 1 h to ensure the complete reaction of
the silica with the aluminum alloy and the formation of α-Al2O3. [182]
utilized the same methodology to prepare aluminum/alumina IPCs by
reactive infiltration of aluminum into porous mullite preforms at
1050 ◦ C. Near-net shaped NiAl(Si)/Al2O3 IPCs were fabricated by the
Fig. 20. Schematic diagram of the gas-pressure infiltration process.
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Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx
double RMP technique in [222,223]. Two steps were involved - firstly,
molten aluminum was reactively penetrated into silica preforms at
1200 ◦ C, obtaining an Al(Si)/Al2O3 composite; subsequently, reactive
penetration of Ni was performed in an argon atmosphere at 1700 ◦ C,
leading to the substitution of Al with NiAl.
2.2.2. Gas pressure infiltration
The gas-pressure infiltration technique utilizes pressurized gas,
usually from an inert gas, as the driving force to overcome the perme­
ation resistance for the impregnation of molten metal into an open-
porous ceramic preform. As shown schematically in Fig. 20, first, the
chamber containing the porous preform and metal billets are evacuated.
Next, the temperature inside the chamber is increased to melt the
metallic alloy billets. The melt covers the porous preform completely,
and subsequently, a pre-set gas pressure is applied to infiltrate the melt
inside the pores of the preforms [187,224–234]. The initial vacuum is
essential to remove entrapped gases from within the porous preform,
which otherwise would pose a barrier to melt infiltration. For successful
infiltration, the process parameters such as temperature, applied pres­
sure, and pressure application time need to be carefully selected. Gas
pressure infiltration requires a lower infiltration temperature compared
to the pressureless infiltration technique, as due to the added gas pres­
sure, the dependence on spontaneous wetting is lesser, and so the tem­
perature needs to be only high enough to ensure complete alloy melting.
With the pressure chamber’s low acquisition cost, increased operational
flexibility, and precise control of the process parameters, gas
pressure-assisted melt infiltration is an ideal route for economically
producing near-net-shaped IPCs. The only added cost is the cost of the
pressurized gas. Also, because of the short contact time of the molten
alloy and ceramic preform, non-coated preforms can be directly used for
infiltration.
Al/Al2O3 (70 vol%) IPCs with a highly regular architecture was
produced by gas-pressure infiltration of molten aluminum into an Al2O3
N. Kota et al.
tower in [176,235]. The Al2O3 tower preform with periodic cubic
symmetry of simple tetragonal (ST) shape was prepared by the
direct-write assembly. Pure aluminum melt infiltration was performed
at 750◦ C under an argon pressure of 3.5 MPa, and the resulting IPC was
directionally solidified. [236] manufactured Ni3Al/Al2O3 (70–85 vol%)
IPCs by the gas pressure infiltration method. The infiltration was
executed at 1550 ◦ C under an Ar gas pressure of 10 MPa for about
30–210 min. [237] fabricated SiC/Al IPCs at a temperature of 750 ◦ C
and a gas pressure of 10 MPa. Molten Al6063 alloy was infiltrated into
3-D porous SiC preform, prepared using a sacrificial pore-forming agent.
Inert gas pressure-assisted infiltration method was used to produce
Al12Si/Al2O3 IPCs in [187]. At 750 ◦ C and 4–10 MPa Ar gas pressure,
molten Al12Si alloy completely covered the porous Al2O3 preform to
facilitate infiltration. Optical images and scanning electron micrograph
of the fabricated IPC are shown in Fig. 21. The fabricated composites
were of very high quality, with only very few micropores remaining.
[208] infiltrated Al–13Si–9Mg alloy into wood-derived porous SiC or
bio-SiC preforms. Infiltration was carried out at a temperature of 750 ◦ C
under 3.5 MPa argon gas pressure. Al/TiC IPCs with varied ceramic
contents (15, 25, and 35 vol%) were fabricated in [238]. Ar gas pressure
of 2 MPa was used for aluminum melt infiltration. A similar gas-pressure
infiltration procedure was employed in [81] to fabricate lamellar
TiC/Al–7Si–5Cu IPCs. The porous scaffolds had varying solid content in
the range of 25–35 vol% before infiltration. It was observed that the
formation of Al4C3 at the interface improved the wettability and facili­
tated the spontaneous infiltration of molten Al alloy into the porous TiC
preforms.
2.2.3. Squeeze infiltration
The squeeze infiltration technique utilizes high pressure, typically in
the range of 50–100 MPa, for rapid infiltration of liquid alloy into a
Fig. 21. Optical micrographs of alumina/Al12Si IPC fabricated by gas pressure infiltration – (a) at 50x and (b) at 1000x, and (c) SEM image of the composite [187]
(cited images have been reproduced with due permission from the publisher).
14
Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx
porous ceramic preform. Once the pre-heated ceramic preform is placed
inside the die cavity, molten alloy is poured over the preform. The entire
system is pressurized under a hydraulic upper punch to the maximum
squeeze pressure (Fig. 22), and the pressure is maintained during the
solidification process. After the completion of the alloy solidification,
the composite thus formed is ejected from the die. The high squeeze
pressures employed in the process enable deep melt penetration and
filling up of tiny micropores in the preform’s cell walls.
The squeeze infiltration process consists of three visible phases [194,
239]. In the preliminary phase, the ceramic preform’s threshold capil­
lary resistance must be surpassed by the externally applied pressure for
initiating the melt infiltration. Following that, a stable melt flow phase
occurs during which the pressure increases linearly with respect to
infiltration time until the molten alloy has filled the preform. Towards
the end of this phase, the pressure rises to the maximum level, i.e.,
penetrating-through pressure. Subsequently, in the third and final
phase, the residual air is removed with micropores, too, getting filled up
with the molten alloy. It is critical to customize the preform’s porosity to
achieve a high permeability and an adequate compressive strength. High
permeability is advantageous because it reduces the hydrodynamic
pressure and hence the melt flow resistance; however, too high a
porosity results in low compressive strength, leading to preform damage
during the infiltration.
Selection of the correct applied pressure and other squeeze-casting
parameters is essential for fabricating near-net-shaped IPCs with a
defined microstructure. Although preheating of the ceramic preform is
essential to avoid any premature melt solidification, excessively high
temperatures would lead to undesirable chemical reactions at the metal/
ceramic interface that decelerate the squeeze infiltration kinetics [240].
On the flip side, the generation of high squeeze pressures needed in the
process makes the use of heavy equipment inevitable. Although a high
N. Kota et al.
Fig. 22. Schematic diagram of the squeeze infiltration process.
applied pressure helps to avoid porosity in the final composite, it may
also lead to deformation or cracking of the porous ceramic preform.
Fig. 23 shows typical micrographs of squeeze-cast SiC/2024Al [79] and
alumina/Al12Si [133] IPCs. Fig. 23a-d depicts optical micrographs of
lamellar metal/ceramic IPCs, fabricated from freeze-cast preforms
having different lamellar spacings with the same reinforcement volume
fraction. The alumina preform was synthesized by pyrolyzing the PFAs
and sintering the green compact, and it had both micropores and mac­
ropores, which were melt-penetrated during squeeze infiltration
(Fig. 23e and f).
Two different freezing temperatures were used in [248] to fabricate
the alumina preforms, and the micrographs show the microstructure of
the faces normal to the freezing direction. For preforms freeze-cast at
− 10 ◦ C, a coarser structure consisting of lamellar domains having di­
mensions in millimetre range is observed. In comparison, the micro­
structure of the preforms freeze-cast at − 30 ◦ C is finer, and the domains
are much smaller, and lamellae are significantly thinner. Both micro­
graphs appear to be fully dense, suggesting good infiltration and a lack
of significant residual porosity. [241] synthesized SiC/Al IPCs by a novel
Fig. 23. Micrographs of the squeeze-cast SiC/2024Al (a–d) [79] and alumina/Al12Si IPCs: (e) Light optical micrograph and (f) SEM micrograph [133] (cited images
have been reproduced with due permission from the publisher).
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Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx
pulse electric current sintering (PECS) method (Fig. 24a) under addi­
tional applied pressure. A porous SiC preform, prepared by conventional
sintering, was sandwiched between two aluminum discs. Then, pulsed
electric current was applied at 660 ◦ C for 2 min under a uniaxial pressure
of 20 MPa to carry out aluminum melt infiltration. This method’s main
benefit is its rapid fabrication of dense materials at low temperatures,
and at relatively short processing periods.
Table 4 lists some further research works involving squeeze-casting
of ceramic preforms for IPC fabrication.
2.2.4. Vacuum infiltration
The vacuum infiltration technique involves melt infiltration into
porous ceramic preforms under a negative suction pressure (Fig. 25).
Firstly, the metallic alloy in the crucible is melted in a resistance furnace.
Simultaneously, a constant N2 gas supply is given to the porous ceramic
preform. The vacuum is then turned on, and the ceramic preforms are
immersed in the melt. After the completion of infiltration, the composite
material is removed from the unit and air-cooled to room temperature
[249]. The applied vacuum, infiltration time, and temperature are the
N. Kota et al. Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx

Fig. 24. Schematic of the melt infiltration process by (a) Pulse electric current sintering method (Based on [241]) and (b) Centrifugal casting method (Based
on [11]).

Table 4
Summary of research carried out on IPCs fabricated by squeeze infiltration technique.
Ceramic Preform fabrication method Metallic Preform & die pre-heating temperature Molten alloy temperature Infiltration pressure Ref
alloy (◦ C) (◦ C) (MPa)

Al2O3 Sacrificial PFAs Al12Si 800, 450 800 100 [239]

SiC Replication method Al12Si 400 800 100 [87]
SiC Polymer foam replication Al4032 800, 300 700–800 120 [242]
SiC Polymer foam replication AlZL109 800, 300 750 120 [243]
Al2O3 Sacrificial PFAs Al12Si 800, 420 800 100 [133]
Al2O3 Sacrificial PFAs Al12Si 700, NA NA 100 [244]
SiC Freeze-casting Al2024 550, 550 800 80 [79]
SiC Gel-casting Al2024 500, 500 750 80 [245]
SiC Polymer foam replication Al23Si 680-700, 650-680 780–810 25–40 [246]
TiN Carbothermal reduction and partial Al13Si 500, 500 800 30 [247]
sintering
Al2O3 Freeze-casting Al12Si 800, 400 750 – [248]

critical process parameters [250]. The main limitation of the vacuum

infiltration process is the low solidification rate, leading to undesirable
interfacial reaction products and enhanced grain growth in the metallic
phase.
IPCs were fabricated by a vacuum infiltration process for infiltrating
molten A356 alloy at 775 ◦ C into porous SiC preforms with or without a
nickel coating in [36]. [251] produced Fe–2Cr13/SiC IPCs through
vacuum infiltration of the melt at 1750 ◦ C into a porous SiC preform,
prepared from a polyurethane foam replica. The SiC preforms were
oxidized at 1200 ◦ C before melt infiltration to study the SiO2 oxide
layer’s role as the barrier for the interfacial reaction. Cu/Ti3SiC2 inter­
penetrating composites were synthesized via the vacuum infiltration
process of molten Cu into Ti3SiC2 ceramic foams prepared using
phenol-formaldehyde resin as PFAs in [42]. During the 2-h infiltration
process, the vacuum was kept above 100 kPa, and the temperature was
kept at 1400 ◦ C. [196,252] fabricated oxidized-SiC3D/Al IPCs by the
vacuum infiltration technique. Alumina and zirconia ceramic freeze-cast
preforms were infiltrated at 740 ◦ C by molten Al10Si(Mg) alloy using a
vacuum pressure metal casting device to synthesize metal/ceramic IPCs
in [253]. After melt infiltration, the composite sections showed an
anisotropic lamellar morphology, which corresponded to alternating
ceramic and metal layers.
X-ray tomography and SEM measurements revealed the formation of
a few defects. Fig. 26 shows the SEM micrographs of zirconia/Al IPCs
along both normal (Fig. 26a and b) and parallel (Fig. 26c and d) to the
freezing direction. Despite the surface irregularities of the ceramic walls,
the entire macro porosity could be completely penetrated by the metal.
Fig. 25. Schematic diagram of a vacuum infiltration unit [250] (cited images
2.2.5. Miscellaneous infiltration methods and IPCs processing techniques
have been reproduced with due permission from the publisher).
In recent years, several newer techniques, some of them

16
N. Kota et al. Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx

Fig. 26. (a), (b) SEM images of zirconia/Al IPC cross-section perpendicular to the freezing direction, and (c), (d) SEM images of zirconia/Al IPC sample cross-section
parallel to the freezing direction [253]. Arrows show the presence of defects. (cited images have been reproduced with due permission from the publisher).

modifications of the methods already discussed, have been developed
for IPC fabrication. A brief review of these latest developments is pro­
vided in this section.
In the ultrasonic infiltration method, acoustic cavitation, i.e., bub­
bles, are generated when the molten alloy is ultrasonically stimulated
through a horn in the melt. The gases dissolved in the melt and those
entrapped in the ceramic foam form the bubble nuclei. When such a
bubble collapses, a pressure wave is generated near the melt, thereby
assisting in the molten alloy penetration into the porous ceramic pre­
form. Ultrasonic power of the transducer and the hole diameter in the
horn are the critical process parameters. It has been discovered that
when a system is subjected to ultrasonic vibration, the contact angle
decreases, improving wettability [255]. Magnesium’s addition to
aluminum alloy melt further improves wettability and thereby the
infiltration kinetics [256]. [254] fabricated metal/ceramic IPCs by
ultrasonic-assisted infiltration of molten Zn–5Al alloy at 500 ◦ C into
freeze-cast ZrB2–SiC. The ultrasonication system was operated at a fre­
quency of 20 kHz and a power of 1 kW. It has been observed that an
ultrasonication duration of 300 s efficiently improved wettability and
facilitated infiltration through the ultrasonic capillary and cavitation.

Fig. 27. Ultrasonic-assisted infiltration mechanism: (a) Prior to ultrasonication; (b) Infiltration process [254] (cited images have been reproduced with due
permission from the publisher).

17
N. Kota et al.
Fig. 27 demonstrates that ultrasonic-assisted infiltration is a feasible and
promising method for the fabrication of non-wetting metal/ceramic
IPCs.
In the Lorentz force infiltration technique, molten alloy is infiltrated
into the porous ceramic preform under electromagnetic force. These
forces are generated by exposing the melt to a high-frequency transient
magnetic field, which causes strong eddy currents to form in the melt
[257]. These induced eddy currents interact with the applied pulsating
magnetic field to generate a Lorentz force density field on the con­
ducting melt, thereby allowing it to penetrate the preform. The intensity
and frequency of the magnetic pulse and the number of discharges are
the critical process parameters.
The centrifugal infiltration technique utilizes a centrifugal force to
infiltrate molten alloy into porous preforms (Fig. 28); the schematic of
the centrifugal casting method is given in Fig. 24b. In this method, the
porous ceramic preform is placed at the end of a mold having an elon­
gated runner loaded with the melt to be infiltrated. High rotational
speeds of the runner generate a centrifugal pressure (up to 15 MPa) to
overcome the threshold pressure for the penetration of melt into the
preform, and the metal head in the runner decreases with the progres­
sion of infiltration [258]. Because of the complete infiltration, this
method is instrumental in minimizing the quantity of molten alloy in the
runner and avoiding a large amount of scrap metal, i.e., to achieve
near-net-shape processing. Alumina-Aluminum alloy IPCs were fabri­
cated by the centrifugal infiltration method in [86,259–261]. Porous
alumina preforms, produced by the polymer replication method, were
pre-heated to 250–350 ◦ C and then centrifugally infiltrated with molten
Al12Si alloy at 720–740 ◦ C using a rotational velocity of 4000–4200
rpm. Composite castings with a percolation structure were obtained as a
result of the centrifugal force acting on the liquid Al12Si alloy surface.
Furthermore, thorough examinations using SEM and EDS demonstrated
the complete filling of the cells, as well as the absence of structural
defects and discontinuities at the metal-ceramic interface [261].
The pressure die infiltration technique involves melt penetration into
a porous ceramic preform positioned inside a solid die by applying
pressure using a movable piston. The infiltration speed, applied piston
pressure, and die temperature are the most critical process parameters
[262]. One of the significant benefits of this method is its ability to
fabricate, with great precision, complex geometry components. How­
ever, since this method’s infiltration speed is relatively higher than that
of the squeeze-casting and gas pressure infiltration process, IPCs fabri­
cated by the pressure die infiltration method often exhibit fragmentation
Fig. 28. Schematic diagrams of (a) Traditional centrifugal infiltration process
and (b) High-pressure centrifugal infiltration process [258] (cited images have
been reproduced with due permission from the publisher).
18
Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx
and distortion of the ceramic lamellae along with a significant reduction
of properties [248]. Metal-ceramic IPCs were fabricated by pressure die
casting of Al9Si3Cu alloy melt into porous Al2O3 preforms in [188].
A novel P/M technique using aluminum powder and silica fiber
needles as raw materials, followed by hot extrusion and heat treatment
at 600 ◦ C, was employed to fabricate Al–Si/Al2O3 IPCs in [263]. Inter­
penetrating phases were produced during the heat treatment as a result
of an intense interfacial reaction. The original fiber morphology was
retained in the final composite [264,265]. fabricated inter­
metallic/ceramic IPCs by a novel pressureless reaction sintering method,
during which attrition milled metal oxides, and aluminum powder
compacts reacted to form metal-aluminide/alumina composites ac­
cording to the reaction,
MeaOb + (2b/3 + c) Al → MeaAlc + (b/3) Al2O3
Metal oxides such as TiO2, Fe2O3, Nb2O5 were used as starting ma­
terials. Mechanical alloying of the powder mixtures was carried out in a
high-energy planetary ball mill under an argon atmosphere. Pressureless
sintering was performed under a carefully controlled vacuum of 0.1 Pa
at 1300–1530 ◦ C, during which the metal oxide reduction by aluminum
occurred. It was reported that because of the highly exothermic nature
of the reaction, high composite densification could be achieved through
careful process control at temperatures in the range of 400–800 ◦ C.
[266] demonstrated solid-state binder jet additive manufacturing
(acronym BJAM or BJT) and reactive sintering post-processing for
fabricating metal/ceramic IPCs. During reactive sintering of Ni-based
super alloy INCONEL 625, a reaction between the Cr alloying element
in the alloy and the binder forms an interconnected carbide reinforcing
phase Cr3C2 throughout the Ni matrix.
3. Properties of IPCs
Several studies have carried out systematic studies of different
physical, mechanical, and thermal properties of IPCs. A detailed sum­
mary of the various properties of IPCs is provided in this section. The
section is divided into two subsections:
Section 3.1 - thorough description of various properties as a function
of ceramic content and other processing and structural parameters is
provided in this section. Further, this section also provides correlations
of Young’s modulus, and CTE of IPCs with relevant micromechanical
models.
Section 3.2 – for different property combinations, domains for IPCs
have been created in Ashby material property maps to compare with
other material families. Further, the concept of material indices has been
discussed to evaluate the performance capability of IPCs for various
design and loading conditions.
3.1. Individual properties
3.1.1. Young’s modulus (E)
The discussion begins with a detailed study of the variation in
Young’s modulus of the IPCs. A summary plot of the variation of E vs.
ceramic content is given in Fig. 29. Apart from Young’s modulus, the
summary plot also consists data for the longitudinal elastic constants
(C11, C22, and C33). These elastic constants differ from E of a material
with higher values, depending upon the Poisson’s ratio [267]. Further,
with identical properties along all directions, the isotropic composites
have single E values, whereas orthotropic materials have three different
E values (E1, E2, and E3) along each of the three principal directions of
the material, and these are marked accordingly in the figure.
Different methods have been employed for measuring the E of IPCs,
such as resonant methods [21,224], 3-point bending test [79], and ul­
trasonic velocity measurement [24,189]. Despite data having been
collected from numerous sources with different metal/ceramic combi­
nations, Fig. 29 shows that there is a strong direct correlation between E
N. Kota et al.
Fig. 29. Summary plot of the results for Young’s modulus vs. ceramic content
for IPCs from different research articles.
and ceramic content. Due to the presence of strong covalent and ionic
bonding in ceramics, they inherently have high Young’s modulus. Due to
the comparatively lower bond strength of metallic bonds present in
metals and their alloys, Young’s modulus of metals is lower than ce­
ramics. Correspondingly, the E of IPCs increases with an increase in
ceramic content. Apart from this general trend, several notable obser­
vations from this plot are discussed here.
The use of the composite preforms having a structure of Al2O3 par­
ticles bonded by SiO2 with lower E value and infiltrated with low E
magnesium alloy has resulted in a lower E value of the IPC in [189]. The
E value of the IPC in [187] is higher than in [24] at the same rein­
forcement volume fraction. This is attributed to the variation in the
composition of the metallic matrix. The alloying of the metallic matrix
with a higher E element than metal has enhanced the composite stiffness
in [225,238]. Further, the quantity of alloying elements significantly
influences the E of the IPCs fabricated using the reactive metal pene­
tration (RMP) process. High content of alloying elements in the metallic
alloy results in inhomogeneous infiltration, leading to larger porosity
formation, thereby lowering the E of IPCs [216]. Preforms with
non-random pore orientation distribution lead to stiffness anisotropy in
IPCs. Uni-axial pressing of preforms prior to sintering flattens the pores
along the press direction and reduces the E, whereas, in perpendicular
directions, the E values are similar and higher, which renders the IPC a
transverse isotropic symmetry with respect to press direction in [137,
191]. Similarly, the IPCs fabricated using freeze-cast preforms exhibit
transverse isotropic symmetry. Because of the continuous ceramic
lamellae oriented along the freezing direction, the stiffness is higher
along the longitudinal direction than along the transverse direction [79,
190,248,268–270]. Further, the sample volume considered for the
analysis determines the degree of randomness of the reinforcement in a
particular plane and the resultant symmetry of the elastic properties
[191]. In contrast to decreasing E with increasing the volume fraction of
the metallic phase, in [236] the E of Al2O3/Ni3Al IPC increased after an
intermediate level. This may be attributed to the lowering of interfacial
delamination and better load transfer from matrix to reinforcement. The
significant fluctuations in the E values in the reference paper [25] can be
attributed to the microstructural variations. In [80], the oxide
(Al2O3–MgO) addition into the lamellar SiC preforms has resulted in
high E, as compared with that without oxide addition. The presence of
chemically formed reinforcement phases such as MgAl2O4 and MgO
improves the interfacial bonding between the ceramic preform and
metallic alloy and the structural integrity of the lamellae, thereby
increasing the E of IPCs [80]. The substantially lower E of the IPC in the
reference paper [241] is attributed to the fabrication method and pre­
form characteristics. Lower E of the preform and considerable residual
porosity resulting from pulse electric current sintering (PECS) method
reduces the E of composite.
Among the various composite properties, E and CTE have been
19
Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx
modelled the most. The correlation of E of IPCs with different micro­
mechanical models has been done in this section, and the same for CTE
has been done in section 3.1.5. The correlation with the micro­
mechanical models has been restricted to IPCs fabricated using Al-based
alloys only. The calculation of the model expressions requires the values
of different material parameters for both matrix and reinforcement.
Although different Al-alloys have been used in different papers reviewed
in this work, for the sake of calculation, properties of pure Al have been
used in the calculations. The property values relevant for the model
calculations for pure Al, and two different ceramic reinforcements,
Al2O3 and SiC, are provided in Table 5.
As maximum data are available for E of Al-alloy-Al2O3 IPCs, these
have been considered for model correlation in Fig. 30. Among the
various models available for composites, HS-bounds [271], and Voigt
[272], Reuss [273], and Feng models [274] have been considered.
Among these models, the Voigt and Reuss models predict the hard
bounds, and the modulus of any composite must lie within these limits,
irrespective of the content and shape of the constituent phases. The
HS-bounds predict the bulk and shear modulus of particle reinforced
composites, and they are more conservative than Voigt and Reuss
models. The Feng model has been developed specifically for composites
having an interpenetrating architecture.
Fig. 30 shows that except for a few deviations, the reported E values
mostly lie between the HS-bounds, and the Feng models predict the
reported Young’s modulus very accurately. However, as already
mentioned, material properties of pure Al have been used for the
calculation in this work, and this surely is associated with some minor
error in interpretation as the different Al-alloys used in various papers
have E slightly different from pure Al. Only very few data points lie
above the Voigt model, which considering the strict nature of this model,
is, however, not possible. As marked in the plot, these data points denote
Cii stiffness constant (and not E). For an isotropic material with a Pois­
son’s ratio of 0.25, the Cii is approximately 25% higher than E, and this
explains this apparent anomaly [275]. Similarly, a minor fraction of data
points lie below the Reuss model, and this can be attributed to the
presence of interconnected pore networks in the IPC [25], significantly
reducing the E of the composite.
3.1.2. Flexural strength (FS)
Fig. 31 shows the variation of FS with the volume fraction of rein­
forcement from the available literature. Unlike E, the plot for FS vs.
ceramic content shows a large scatter. This is due to the fact that while E
depends predominantly on the ceramic content, FS depends upon mul­
tiple parameters controlling the deformation and fracture of the IPC
under bending load. Some of the important parameters controlling the
flexural strength of IPCs are the deformation characteristics of the
metallic and ceramic phases, interfacial strength, IPC microstructure,
and ceramic content, as well as the processing route and process pa­
rameters employed for porous preforms fabrication and melt infiltration.
Furthermore, the flexural strength of ceramics is strongly dependent
upon the presence of numerous defects and their orientations with
respect to the loading direction. Ceramics are inherently weak in ten­
sion, and as half of the sample cross-section is under tension in a flexural
test, this further adds to the large scatter of the data.
Generally, the FS of IPCs is measured by employing either 3-point
bending test [109,145,222] or 4-point bending test [34,227,236].
Despite the large scatter, some trends are worth mentioning. The
dependence of the flexural strength on ceramic content can broadly be
Table 5
E, ν, and CTE of Al, Al2O3, and SiC used for the model calculations [24,184,204].
Constituent E (GPa) ν CTE (10− 6/K)
Al matrix 70 0.35 23.7
Al2O3 380 0.22 6.6
SiC 410 0.19 4
N. Kota et al. Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx

manufactured IPC, which drastically lowers the FS value [177]. The use
of refractory metals and ceramic reinforcement with similar CTEs will
lead to strong interfacial bonding in IPCs and high FS values [34]. The
presence of a substantial amount of residual porosity in IPCs [38,222]
significantly reduces the FS values as compared to the non-porous IPCs
[215]. Further, IPCs with interconnected pores show very low FS values.
Interconnected pores act as large flaws and provide local stress con­
centrations and favorable crack propagation paths, thus lowering the FS
[25]. Besides, the existence of a brittle ceramic network around the
reinforcement grains provides favorable paths for crack propagation in a
brittle manner with lowering the FS [229]. In [145], the intermetallic’s
special root structure in the interior of the TiC0.5 grains resulted in
higher FS values. In IPCs fabricated using ultrasonic-assisted infiltration,
with increasing the duration of ultrasonication, micro defects like voids
and interfacial debonding can be avoided, and correspondingly, FS in­
Fig. 30. Plot showing the correlation between the IPC Young’s modulus values
with theoretical model predictions.
creases [254]. Optimization of the preform pore size is an important
parameter, which affects the FS of the IPCs. A decrease in preform pore
size enhances the FS; however, after a certain pore size, large inner
stresses will be induced at the interface that deteriorates the interface
combination. Moreover, at too small a pore size, infiltration becomes
difficult, and correspondingly, the FS decreases [245]. The FS values of
the IPCs fabricated using freeze-cast ceramic preforms show significant
anisotropy, with higher values along the freezing direction of the pre­
form (marked as longitudinal) than in the perpendicular direction
(marked as transverse) [79,225]. Further, the finer lamellar micro­
structure leads to an improvement in FS values [79]. The FS values of the
IPCs also depend on the preform’s strength; increasing with increasing
strength of the preform [42]. Finally, aging heat treatment also affects
the strength of the IPC. [204] reported higher FS after T6 treatment in
IPCs fabricated via pressureless infiltration due to the precipitation of
Mg2Si and a cleaner interface.

3.1.3. Fracture toughness (KIC)

Fig. 31. Summary plot of the results available for flexural strength vs. ceramic
Another important mechanical property that has been studied
content for IPCs from different research articles.
extensively for IPCs is fracture toughness (KIC), which denotes the
resistance of a material to crack propagation. Ceramics inherently
divided into two regions – up to around 60 vol% ceramic, the flexural
possess low fracture toughness and are susceptible to brittle fracture.
strength generally increases with ceramic content; at higher ceramic
Soft metals generally have yield stress much lower than the fracture
contents, however, the flexural strength decreases. The trend is pretty
stress, and the stress concentration at the crack tip forms a plastic zone,
discernible for both Al2O3 and TiC reinforced IPCs, for which relatively
blunting the crack and resulting in ductile behavior and high fracture
more data are available. The increasing trend at low ceramic volume
toughness [276,277].
fractions shows that the flexural strength at these ceramic contents is
A summary plot of the KIC variation in IPCs with ceramic content is
controlled by the strength of the ceramic phase. Due to the relatively
shown in Fig. 32. Different methods have been employed for measuring
high amount of interpenetrating metal content, any damage propagating
the KIC of IPCs, such as 3-point bending test [22,145,186], 4-point
within the brittle ceramic can be effectively bridged and deflected by the
bending test [34,227,236], Vickers indentation [215], and double tor­
plastically deforming metallic phase, and the load-bearing capacity of
sion technique [25]. Despite some scatter, generally, with increasing
the IPC remains intact. However, at ceramic content >60 vol%, the
ceramic content, KIC decreases. As the ceramic content increases, the
decreasing amount of metallic phase in the IPC is no more able to arrest
content of the metallic phase alleviating the stress concentration in front
the crack propagation in the ceramic phase effectively, and corre­
spondingly, the flexural strength decreases. Further evidence of this
phenomenon is provided in the next section, where the dependence of
IPC fracture toughness on ceramic content is discussed.
Furthermore, the IPCs fabricated using lower cell size preforms have
higher FS [109]. This is attributed to thinner strut spacing, which results
in a finer microstructure, and prohibits the crack propagation more
effectively. As compared to small and coarse-sized metal ligaments, the
FS of IPC having medium-sized metal ligaments is higher, which is
attributed to higher resistance provided by the medium ligament to
crack propagation and increases with increasing metal content [227].
Similar to E, the quantity of alloying elements significantly influences
the FS of the IPCs fabricated using the RMP process. Higher content of
alloying elements in the metallic alloy results in inhomogeneous infil­
tration, leading to larger porosity formation, which is detrimental to the
FS of IPCs [216]. The use of precursor preforms having lower strength
and a considerable degree of residual porosity and cracks in the RMP
Fig. 32. Summary plot of the results available for fracture toughness vs.
process results in significant residual porosity and cracks in the
ceramic content for IPCs from different research articles.

20
N. Kota et al.
of a propagating crack decreases, and correspondingly the KIC value
decreases. This phenomenon also controlled the reduction in flexural
strength of IPCs at high ceramic contents, as reported earlier. Besides,
the KIC of the composites depends strongly on the orientation of the
notch to the interconnected metallic/intermetallic particles. Parallel
orientation results in higher KIC values than normal orientation. Another
reason for higher toughness values may be attributed to the large notch
width, which leads to an overestimation of the KIC values [35]. Apart
from the microstructure alone, the type of thermal residual stresses and
contiguity of the ceramic phase also influence the KIC. High tensile re­
sidual stress and low contiguity of ceramic phase cause the crack to
propagate in the metallic phase and at the interface, leading to a good
KIC value [24]. Refinement of the lamellae thickness improves the KIC of
IPCs due to the lower probability of the existence of a critical defect in
finer ceramic lamellae. Further, the incorporation of brittle elements
into the metallic matrix lowers the KIC of IPCs [234]. Ref. [79,225] show
that the KIC values of the IPCs fabricated using freeze-cast ceramic
preforms show significant anisotropy, with higher values along the
freezing direction of the preform than in the normal direction.
As with FS, the combination of refractory metals and ceramic rein­
forcement having similar CTEs leads to strong interfacial bonds, thereby
improving the fracture toughness of the IPC [34]. The existence of a
brittle network around reinforcement grains may reduce the metal
bridging effect, and correspondingly, cracks may propagate in a brittle
manner along this network, resulting in lower KIC values [229]. Further,
the presence of a pore network interconnected in all three dimensions
provides a favorable path for crack propagation, significantly reducing
the KIC of the IPC [25]. Apart from the volume fraction of ceramic
reinforcement alone, the intrinsic KIC of the reinforcement is also an
important factor affecting the toughness of IPCs. Generally, the use of
high KIC ceramic as reinforcement in IPCs will result in higher toughness
[186]. Furthermore, the presence of a special root structure of inter­
metallic in the interior of the TiC0.5 further increases the KIC by plastic
deformation during the crack propagation [145].
3.1.4. Compressive strength (CS)
Fig. 33 plots the compressive strength of IPCs against the ceramic
content. Similar to the FS data in Fig. 31, data for the CS also display a
large scatter. However, as the CS of ceramics is higher than their FS, the
IPCs also possess a higher CS. Furthermore, as with FS, apart from only
the ceramic content, distribution of the ceramic and metallic phases in
the IPC, as well as preform and IPC fabrication methods, have a strong
influence on the CS. Some of these aspects are discussed below.
Generally, preforms with a considerable degree of residual closed
porosity and cracks result in significant residual porosity and cracks in
the manufactured IPC, and drastically lowers the CS value [177]. Be­
sides, the microstructure of the ceramic preform also has a strong in­
fluence – a finer microstructure generally results in a higher CS due to
Fig. 33. Summary plot of the results available for compressive strength vs.
ceramic content for IPCs from different research articles.
21
Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx
the lesser probability of the presence of a critical defect [176,248,278].
The difficulty in infiltrating the molten alloy into ceramic preforms
using pressureless infiltration may result in a significant amount of re­
sidual porosity in the fabricated IPC, thereby resulting in a lower CS
[19]. As already discussed for FS, the use of ultrasonication during
infiltration can significantly improve the wettability of the system and
assists in spontaneous infiltration through the ultrasonic capillary and
cavitation actions. Moreover, by increasing the duration of the ultra­
sonication, the microdefects like voids and interfacial debonding can be
avoided, resulting in improved CS [254].
Ref. [248,278] have shown that the IPCs fabricated using freeze-cast
ceramic preforms exhibits a pronounced anisotropy. Due to the pre­
dominantly continuous ceramic lamellae along the freezing direction,
the compressive strength along this direction is much higher. Although
much lower CS is observed along transverse directions, due to the
presence of ceramic bridges joining the adjacent lamellae, the
compressive strength improves in comparison to the values predicted by
micromechanical models. In [80], the addition of mixed oxide
(Al2O3–MgO) into the lamellar SiC preforms has resulted in enhanced
CS. This was attributed to the presence of chemically formed rein­
forcement phases such as MgAl2O4 and MgO, thereby improving the
interfacial bonding between the ceramic and metallic alloy phases.
Similar to FS, improper sintering of the ceramic reinforcement in pow­
der injection molding leads to voids in the composite, and if the metallic
fraction is too little to fill these voids, pores result. This leads to the
lowering of the CS values at large ceramic contents [23]. Further, the CS
of IPC can be varied significantly by changing the morphology of the
pores in the ceramic preform used for infiltration. Preforms consisting of
a combination of large pores along with a high volume fraction of small
pores result in good infiltration of the molten metallic alloy, resulting in
high CS [226]. Lastly, the incorporation of SiC particles into the SiC
foam/Al IPC has resulted in higher CS than composites reinforced solely
by the SiC particles [243].
3.1.5. Coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE)
The thermal expansion behavior of IPCs has been studied extensively
due to their vast potentials for thermal management applications in the
electronic packaging industry [279,280], as well as their lower CTE
values than particle reinforced MMCs [30]. The study of thermal
expansion behavior of IPCs, or in general MMCs, is inherently compli­
cated due to the interplay between numerous factors such as phase ar­
chitecture, composite microstructure, reinforcement volume fraction,
presence of processing induced thermal residual stress, content of mi­
cropores and defects in the microstructure, initiation of plastic defor­
mation and/or damage during thermal expansion, etc. Most of these
factors are extremely difficult to control, and several operate concur­
rently, making the overall material behavior rather complicated. A
summary plot showing the CTE of IPCs vs. ceramic content is shown in
Fig. 34. Summary plot of the results available for CTE vs. ceramic content for
IPCs from different research articles.
N. Kota et al.
Fig. 34.
The CTE of the IPCs strongly depends upon the type and volume
fraction of ceramic reinforcement. Generally, due to the much lower
CTE of the ceramic phase, with increasing ceramic content, CTE of the
IPC decreases. As evident from Fig. 34, compared to Al2O3 IPCs, lower
CTEs have been reported for the IPCs with SiC reinforcement. This can
be attributed to the much lower CTE value of SiC in comparison to Al2O3
(see Table 5). Among the results shown in this figure, lowest CTEs are
observed in IPCs reinforced with diamond [37]. This can be attributed to
the very low intrinsic CTE of diamond, which imposes a strong
constraint on the thermal expansion of the matrix and lowers the CTE.
For similar ceramic content, the CTE value of the IPC in [187] is
lower than in [24]. This can be attributed to the different metallic
matrices used in these IPCs. Alloying of the metallic matrix with ele­
ments having a lower CTE than the metal results in a lower CTE in the
IPC. Besides, the microstructure of the IPCs also has a strong influence
on the expansion behavior. Microstructure with numerous and large
metallic alloy-rich regions free from ceramic phase experience reduced
restraining effect of the reinforcing phase, and generally display a higher
CTE [187]. Also, the presence of a considerable degree of porosity in the
manufactured IPC lowers the CTE value due to the filling up of these
pores by the plastically deforming metallic alloy during the thermal
expansion [177]. Processing and/or microstructure induced anisotropy
in preform stiffness have been reported to lead to strong CTE anisot­
ropies in IPC. Higher stiffness along the longitudinal direction of the
preform than in the transverse direction restricts the thermal expansion
of the composite and results in lower CTE [31,32].
The use of ceramic preform fabricated using robotic deposition for
IPC manufacturing results in lower CTE because of the uniform three-
dimensional spatial periodicity of the preform, which provides effec­
tive restrainment for thermal expansion of composite [176]. The sig­
nificant fluctuations in the CTE values in [25] can be attributed to the
microstructural variations. The IPC fabrication using a ceramic preform
coated with a lower CTE metal results in a lower CTE than an un-coated
ceramic preform [36]. During heating of the composite, the plastically
deformed metal expands into the pores, thus reducing the CTE of IPC.
Proper control of the preform pore size is a necessary parameter, which
strongly affects the CTE of the IPC. With a reduction of pore size, the
constraining effect on the matrix thermal expansion increases, thereby
reducing the CTE of the IPC [245]. However, with a further reduction of
the pore size, large inner stresses will be induced at the interface, which
may deteriorate the interface region. Further, at too small pore sizes,
infiltration becomes difficult [245]. Further, infiltration of the preform
with lower CTE metal alloy remarkably reduces the composite CTE
[193].
To further understand the thermal expansion behavior of the IPCs,
the CTE values of the alumina reinforced, and SiC reinforced IPCs are
compared with three well-established micromechanical models in
Fig. 35. Plot showing the correlation between the reviewed CTE values with
theoretical model predictions.
22
Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx
Fig. 35. Among the models considered, the rule of mixtures (ROM)
model follows the simple mixing principle. While the Kerner model
corresponds to composites with discontinuous spherical reinforcements,
the Turner model represents the composites having a percolating rein­
forcement morphology representative for IPCs. A detailed description of
these models can be found in [281–283]. For the model calculations, as
with E, the matrix is always taken as pure Al, and the material properties
of the constituent phases used for calculations are given in Table 5.
Fig. 35 shows that the CTE values of the alumina reinforced IPCs fit
very well between Kerner and Turner models, whereas the Turner model
fits best to the reported values for SiC reinforced IPCs. It is worth
considering that most of the works whose values are reported here had
an Al-alloy matrix. The CTE of these alloys is almost always lower than
pure Al, and correspondingly, the model curves will be shifted further
downward. Additionally, several SiC-based IPCs have CTE much lower
than even the Turner model, which cannot be attributed solely to the
metallic alloy with a lower CTE. This can probably be attributed to the
presence of microvoids in IPCs, resulting from incomplete infiltration,
interfacial debonding because of solidification shrinkage, and thermal
residual stresses due to CTE mismatch between metallic matrix and
reinforcement. As discussed elaborately by Balch et al. [284], these
microvoids help in relieving the local constraint, and plastically
deformed metal expands into these voids, thus lowering the CTE of the
IPCs below the model predictions.
3.1.6. Thermal conductivity (TC)
For thermal management applications, along with a low CTE of the
material, a high thermal conductivity (TC) is essential to ensure good
heat dissipation. IPCs with SiC reinforcement have been deemed as
potential candidates due to the low CTE and high TC of SiC. Fig. 36 plots
the TC of several IPCs from different research papers vs. their corre­
sponding ceramic content.
Due to the lack of sufficient data and pronounced scatter in TC of
IPCs, establishing a definite trend is difficult. However, owing to the
higher TC of SiC over Al2O3, for similar ceramic content, IPCs reinforced
with SiC possess higher TC. At very high ceramic content in the pre­
forms, the size of the interconnected pore channel decreases. Corre­
spondingly, complete infiltration of the molten metal in the preform
becomes difficult, and uninfiltrated regions may remain in the IPC,
lowering the TC of the composite [237]. Ref. [204] reported an increase
in TC after the T6 treatment. This was attributed to an improved
microstructure of the alloy matrix and a cleaner interface. Both these
factors would significantly reduce the electron scattering and improve
the TC of the composite. Further, [36] reported a reduction of the IPC’s
TC as a result of the pre-coating of the preform with lower TC metal. As
with other properties already discussed, TC of IPCs fabricated using
preforms having directional porosity exhibit a pronounced anisotropy
[184,193]. Generally, the continuous channels for the transmission of
Fig. 36. Summary plot of the results available for thermal conductivity vs.
ceramic content for IPCs from different research articles.
N. Kota et al.
free electrons and phonons in the axial direction of directional com­
posites result in lower scattering and enhance the TC in this direction
[184,193].
3.1.7. Some other properties
While the properties most frequently studied for IPCs have been
thoroughly discussed in the previous subsections, some of the less
frequently studied properties are discussed in this section.
Several studies have performed in-situ study of the microstructure
and property evolution in the IPC in response to externally applied
loads. Progressive studies of the damage evolution in IPCs were carried
out in [278,285–287] using advanced 2D and 3D microstructure based
techniques. In-situ diffraction-based techniques have been used by
several researchers to study the internal load transfer mechanism and
damage evolution in IPCs when put under compressive or tensile
stresses. While energy dispersive synchrotron X-ray diffraction, using a
white beam, was used for this purpose in [133,138,288–291], syn­
chrotron X-ray diffraction using a monochromatic beam was used in
[235,292,293]. These studies measured the evolution of the lattice
microstrains in different crystalline phases of various IPCs as a function
of externally applied stress and calculated the load and load fraction
carried by each phase using standard elasticity relations.
Several studies have investigated the machining and tribological
properties of IPCs. Liu et al. [44] investigated the cutting resistance of
metal/ceramic IPCs. Apart from the large dependence of cutting resis­
tance on the hardness of the ceramic phase, the continuous metallic
phase plays a role in crack bridging and consumes energy by plastic
deformation. Dolata [261] and Chang et al. [294] studied the wear
behaviour of Al12Si/Al2O3 and Al8Mg/Al2O3 IPCs. Interpenetrating
composites displayed excellent wear resistance compared to unrein­
forced matrix alloy owing to the interconnected and protruding Al2O3
struts, preventing the direct wear of the matrix alloy. Also, the work of
Imbeni et al. [295] and Liu et al. [120] showed that IPCs exhibit
significantly greater wear resistance than conventional particle rein­
forced composites.
Rio et al. [296] explored the use of co-continuous composites for
high-temperature applications. They showed that IPCs are more resis­
tant to thermal cycling damage than traditional composites. This was
attributed to the co-continuous architecture, which produces a large
amount of hydrostatic stress, whereas traditional architectures result in
highly deviatoric stresses. Pavese et al. [38] characterized the fatigue
behavior of the Al/Al2O3 co-continuous composites. They have shown
that the co-continuous composites with a high volume fraction of
ceramic reinforcement behave similarly to monolithic ceramics with a
flat Wohler curve and have a relatively flat S–N curve up to the fatigue
limit.
3.2. Representation of the properties of IPCs in the material property
charts
Material property charts constructed by Ashby [297] have significant
importance in a vast number of applications. These plots (also known as
Ashby plots) are made between any two material properties along the
two axes. The primary purpose of these plots is to arrange and classify
different materials according to their properties, and they aid in the
selection of appropriate materials for a particular engineering design
involving multiple criteria. To compare the IPCs with other materials
and to identify their potential applications, based on the data reviewed
in this work, domains of IPCs have been created in the relevant Ashby
plots in Fig. 37-Fig. 43. The location in each plot covered by the IPCs are
marked with blue solid ellipse, and the individual data points are also
shown as black dots. Further, to facilitate direct comparison with par­
ticle reinforced MMCs (data have been collected from the following
literature [29,188,237], and [298–331]), corresponding regions for
these MMCs have also been added in each plot. Before the individual
plots are discussed separately, some general features of the Ashby plots
23
Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx
Fig. 37. Modified Young’s modulus vs. density plot [297].
are mentioned below:
• The plots have double log axes. This allows plotting a very wide
range of data for all known materials, starting from the flimsiest of
foams to the strongest and heaviest of metals, ceramics, and their
composites.
• Various broad material families are shown in these plots as big bal­
loons and marked accordingly (such as metals, polymers, foams,
etc.). Individual smaller bubbles within a large balloon correspond to
specific materials of a larger family (such as bubbles of steels,
aluminum alloys, etc., within metals balloon).
• In each plot, different dotted guidelines with definite, constant slopes
are marked. These represent various material indices for particular
set design criteria (such as stiffness limited design of a tensile bar at
minimum mass, and so on). All materials lying on a particular
guideline are equally good for that design purpose, materials lying
above are better, and those lying below are inferior.
• Another important feature of these plots is, most of the area in each
plot is devoid of any material, showing that all existing materials
have some property limitations. Filling up the void spaces to enhance
the properties is the driving force of any new material development.
a) Young’s modulus vs. density plot (Fig. 37)
The plot shows that the Young’s modulus of IPCs are higher than
most metals, at a much smaller density. One of the primary limitations of
common metals for weight limited applications is their low specific
stiffness (E/ρ), which typically remains constant at a low value in the
range of 25–28 GPa/(Mg.m− 3). Furthermore, as Young’s modulus is
structure insensitive, unlike strength, it cannot be significantly
improved by alloying or heat treatment. In IPCs, significantly higher
specific stiffness values of >60 GPa/(Mg.m− 3) are readily achievable.
Further, the two guidelines with slopes 2 and 3 correspond to minimum
mass criteria for stiffness-limited designs of beams and plates, respec­
tively, both loaded in bending. In both cases, IPCs perform better than
most metals. The plot also shows that although the density of particle
reinforced MMCs is lower, the achievable stiffness of IPCs far exceeds
the particle reinforced MMCs.
b) Strength vs. density plot (Fig. 38)
Unlike Young’s modulus, strength is not a well-defined property, and
different tests are used to determine the strength of different material
classes. In plotting this chart, yield strength has been used for metals and
alloys, flexural strength has been used for ceramics, and tensile strength
has been used for composites. As flexural strength typically provides a
more conservative outlook than compressive strength, this value for
IPCs has been used for the comparison here. The plot shows that the
strength of IPCs is comparable to the best of the class materials for both
N. Kota et al. Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx

Fig. 38. Modified strength vs. density plot [297]. Fig. 40. Modified specific modulus vs. specific strength plot [297].

metals and ceramics, and even comparable to that of particle reinforced

MMCs.

c) Young’s modulus vs. strength (Fig. 39) and specific modulus vs.
specific strength (Fig. 40)

These plots combine the information plotted along the ordinate of

the previous two plots. Fig. 39 shows that the performance of IPCs ranks
very high for both the properties and they outperform the particle
reinforced MMCs by a wide margin. Furthermore, due to their lower
density than most metals, IPCs are better than almost all metals when
specific properties are concerned (Fig. 40). Two guidelines in these plots
are of special interest. The parameter (σf/E) with a slope of 1 denotes the
limit strain for the elastic deformation. Fig. 39 shows that this limit
strain for IPCs is comparable with most metals, as they lie on the same
( )
/
tieline with slope 1. Furthermore, the parameter σ 2f E with a slope 2 Fig. 41. Modified fracture toughness vs. Young’s modulus plot [297].

denotes the ability of a material to absorb energy while still elastic, and a
high value of this parameter is important to make springs. Fig. 39 shows
that due to their higher E, IPCs are inferior to metals in this respect.
d) Fracture toughness vs. modulus plot (Fig. 41)
Consideration of fracture toughness (KIC) is of fundamental interest
for damage tolerant designs. For IPCs, the comparison of KIC values with
ceramics has tremendous practical relevance. Ceramics are very brittle
due to their low KIC, and if IPCs can improve that, the application fields
can be expanded significantly. Fig. 41 shows that while for IPCs, KIC and
E are inversely proportional to each other, generally, KIC of IPCs are
higher than ceramics, and several values are even comparable to those of
metals. For conventional design of structural components, a KIC mini­
mum of 20 MPa√m is often considered as a minimum requirement, and
some IPCs can actually satisfy this criterion, albeit at a significantly
( )
/
reduced E. The parameter GIC ≈ K2Ic E are denoted as toughness
contours with a slope of 0.5, and this is a measure of the apparent
fracture surface energy. The plot shows that the toughness of IPCs is
almost two orders of magnitude higher than the common ceramics.
However, the plot shows that both the toughness and fracture toughness
of particle reinforced MMCs are higher than IPCs.

Fig. 39. Modified Young’s modulus vs. strength plot [297]. Fig. 42. Modified fracture toughness vs. strength plot [297].

24
N. Kota et al. Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx

e) Fracture toughness vs. strength plot (Fig. 42) Table 6

Comparison of IPCs properties with other material classes.
The fracture toughness vs. strength plot is important in estimating Property of IPCs Comparison with
the size of the process zone in front of the crack tip. Work is done within
PRCs Metals Ceramics
this process zone that allows absorbing more energy during the defor­
mation process, thereby raising the toughness of the material. The size of E Higher Higher Lower
( ) FS Comparable Higher Higher
/ KIC Slightly lower Lower Higher
the process zone is expressed as d = K2IC πσ 2 , and this corresponds to
f CS Comparable Higher Lower
CTE Lower Lower Comparable
contours of slope 1 in the fracture toughness vs. strength plot. Ceramics TC Comparable Comparable Higher
are inherently brittle due to the very small size of the process zone, while
metals are ductile and resistant to cracking due to the more extended
process zone. The plot shows that the size of the process zone in several
Table 7
IPCs is at least one order of magnitude larger than in ceramics.
Comparison of IPCs properties with other material classes.
Figs. 41 and 42 together denote that IPCs are potentially very
attractive in alleviating the low fracture toughness of ceramics in load- Property of IPCs Comparison with

bearing applications, without affecting their strength and stiffness.
However, solely in terms of fracture resistant behavior, IPCs are inferior
to particle reinforced MMCs.
f) CTE vs. thermal conductivity plot (Fig. 43)
The CTE vs. thermal conductivity plot is of fundamental interest for
applications requiring frequent temperature inversions. Specifically for
thermal management applications, the material should ideally have a
low CTE and high thermal conductivity for good thermal shock resis­
tance. Contours of constant (λ/α) are plotted in Fig. 43, and a high value
of this parameter is essential for good thermal shock resistance. Metals,
although having a high thermal conductivity, generally have a high CTE,
too. The plot shows that IPCs outperform most metals, and even particle
reinforced MMCs, both due to their lower CTE and higher (λ/α).
Based on this thorough review, tabular comparisons of the perfor­
mance of IPCs with respect to other relevant material classes discussed
in this work are given in Table 6 and Table 7.
4. Future research directions
This article has made an effort to present an account of the different
processing techniques for fabricating metal/ceramic IPCs, emphasizing
the methods used for manufacturing the porous ceramic preforms and
the various melt infiltration strategies. Also, the different thermo-
mechanical properties of IPCs affecting their performance are dis­
cussed in detail, along with their detailed comparison with other rele­
vant existing materials, using Ashby plots. Although significant progress
has already been achieved in developing interpenetrating phase com­
posite materials, a lot of future research is still needed to transcend them
from materials having high potentials to materials with definite indus­
trial applications. In this section, some potential areas for directing
Fig. 43. Modified CTE vs. thermal conductivity plot [297].
PRCs Metals Ceramics
E vs. ρ Superior Superior Comparable
FS vs. ρ Comparable Comparable Comparable
E vs. FS Superior Comparable Comparable
Specific E vs. specific FS Superior Superior Comparable
KIC vs. E Slightly inferior Comparable Superior
KIC vs. FS Comparable Slightly inferior Superior
CTE vs. TC Superior Superior Comparable
future research are identified and discussed elaborately. A schematic of
the brief layout showing the important future trends for IPCs is given in
Fig. 44.
As discussed in section 2 of this review, fabrication of IPCs is a
multistep process and it is essential to modernize and standardize the
processing technologies into fully automated assembly lines to ensure
economical production of IPCs with reproducible microstructure and
properties. Thankfully, due to the growing interest in this field, an en­
gineer’s toolkit for articulating the structure/property correlations in
IPCs has evolved considerably in both analytical and experimental
methods. The advent of modern technologies such as micro computed
tomography, advanced ultrasonic methods, etc., has made it possible for
the visualization, characterization, and representation of the geomet­
rical parameters and the topological relationships between the different
constituents. The discussion of section 3 shows that the percolating
three-dimensional network structure of IPC is very effective in over­
coming the issue of strength-toughness inversion observed in several
conventional materials. The advantage of phase interconnectivity is
particularly felt in specific applications where two or more differing
properties, such as mechanical strength and electrical conductivity, can
be optimized in the same component. The exploration of other syner­
gistic properties that rely on phase interconnectivity necessitates the
development of various IPCs and systematic analysis of their properties.
Although the characteristics of IPCs are fundamentally dependent
upon the microstructure of the porous preforms, producing porous
bodies with a regular and controllable pore structure using the existing
fabrication routes is challenging. Further research is required to reduce
the number of processing stages, usage of only biocompatible and non-
toxic reagents, developing processing techniques that do not need sub­
sequent pyrolysis and sintering, and, of course, reduce the costs asso­
ciated with the porous ceramic synthesis. Advancements in additive
manufacturing techniques can fabricate preforms with well-controlled
architectures, including porosity, periodicity, and the topology and
spatial distribution of composite structures based upon user-defined
CAD designs. Stereolithography-based methods using photosensitive
polymer solutions could be used. Such methods can be used more easily
to construct periodic IPCs with improved mechanical properties. The
application of fluid mechanics to develop reliable simulation of the
molten alloy flow through the pores of the preforms using different melt
infiltration methods can further aid in developing optimum processing
parameters.

25
N. Kota et al.
Fig. 44. Most important future directions for IPCs.
Further research can be pursued on specialized configurations of
IPCs, such as those with hierarchical and gradient structures to suc­
cessfully fabricate functionally graded (FG) IPCs. Although functionally
graded materials are subject to extensive current research [332,333],
IPCs with graded structures are still at a very rudimentary stage. The
development and subsequent characterization of hybrid metal/ceramic
IPCs, consisting of more than two constituent phases for different
properties, has further potentials. IPCs fabricated using preforms pro­
duced from nano-sized ceramic particles could reveal some interesting
results concerning the melt infiltration kinetics, interfacial behavior,
bonding strength at the metal-ceramic interface, and overall composite
properties.
Secondary processing routes, such as joining and machining opera­
tions of metal/ceramic IPCs with a 3-D continuous network structure,
are going to be challenging due to the vastly different thermal, physical,
and mechanical properties of the constituents and the presence of a large
volume fraction of hard ceramic reinforcements. Although electric
discharge machining is commonly used to cut metallic materials, it is
often difficult in MMCs due to the low electrical conductivity of many
ceramic material components. So, there is a compelling need to develop
advanced joining and machining techniques. Near-net shaping of com­
ponents is going to be one viable solution for the problem of challenging
machining.
Finally, for conventional composite systems, a plethora of well-
established analytical and micromechanical models have been devel­
oped to provide bounds or forecast definite values for various material
properties. These models typically consider the properties of the con­
stituents, their volume fractions, and morphologies. While, with the
advancement of computational powers in recent years, certain finite
element modeling of IPCs has been carried out, systematic efforts are
still required by the global scientific community for developing appro­
priate micromechanical models adequately.
5. Concluding remarks
Interpenetrating metal/ceramic composites are materials in which
both the metal and ceramic phases are topologically co-continuous and
three-dimensionally percolating. Owing to an interleaving 3-D network
structure, IPCs allow a combination of attributes and property
enhancement, not possible in composite materials with traditional
reinforcement architectures. This comprehensive review of metal/
ceramic IPCs has compiled and thoroughly described the different pro­
cessing techniques for fabricating metal/ceramic interpenetrating phase
composites (IPCs), emphasizing the methods used for manufacturing the
26
Ceramics International xxx (xxxx) xxx
porous ceramic preforms and the various melt infiltration strategies.
Detailed property analyses carried out within the scope of this review
highlights the ability to fabricate IPCs with a vast range of properties for
the same material systems by varying the composition and microstruc­
ture distributions. Systematic plotting of the reviewed IPC properties in
several Ashby material property maps, as well as the use of contours of
material indices has made it possible to compare the IPCs with metals,
ceramics, and particle reinforced MMCs, the materials which IPCs could
potentially replace in various applications. Finally, several potentially
significant areas for future IPCs studies have been identified.
Declaration of competing interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial
interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence
the work reported in this paper.
Acknowledgement
The work has been funded by the Indian Institute of Technology
Kharagpur, India under ISIRD grant number "HCT".
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