Kwame Nkrumah University of

Science & Technology, Kumasi, Ghana

MSE 351
Engineering Ceramics I

Anthony Andrews (PhD)

Associate Professor
Department of Materials Engineering
Faculty of Mechanical and Chemical Engineering
College of Engineering
Website: www.anthonydrews.wordpress.com
Online Lectures: classroom.knust.edu.gh

Teaching Assistant: Miss Freda Quaye

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 Kwame Nkrumah University of
Science & Technology, Kumasi, Ghana

UNIT 3

MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF
CERAMICS

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 Content

• Characteristic properties of ceramics

• Fracture mechanics

• Measuring fracture toughness

• Toughening mechanisms

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 Learning Outcome
1. Identify the conditions under which brittle fracture of ceramics
occur.

2. Know how to manage, slow down and or stop crack propagation

leading to failure of ceramic.

3. Measure strength of ceramic materials

4. Understand the principles governing ceramic toughening.

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Characteristic properties of ceramics

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 Factors Affecting Strength of
Ceramics

1. Bonding in ceramics affect the properties

2. Crystal structures are more complex: multi-atom basis

3. Processing routes of ceramics

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 Fracture Mechanics in Ceramics

• Crack propagation occurs in ceramic materials

– Cracks are always perpendicular to the applied stress

• How do ceramics respond to mechanical deformation??

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 Crack Propagation
• Tensile stresses tend to propagate crack tip

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 Principles of Fracture Mechanics
• Fracture toughness – measure of a ceramic material’s ability to
resist fracture when a crack is present

• Plane strain fracture toughness KIc, is defined according to the

expression

𝐾𝐼𝐶 = 𝑌𝜎𝑓 𝜋𝑎

KIC = plane strain fracture toughness (MPa√m)

Y = geometric constant (usually ~1)
a = length of external crack or half the length of internal one
σ = applied stress

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 Fracture Toughness
Problem
A reaction-bonded silicon nitride has a strength of 300 MPa and a
fracture toughness of 3.6 MPa.m1/2. What is the largest-size internal
crack that this material can support without fracturing? Given Y = 1

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 Modulus of Rupture (MOR)
• Ceramic materials are usually tested in bending
– Sample preparation is easier
– Significant difference in results for testing in tension,
compression and bending
Flexural strength (modulus of rupture, bend strength, transverse
rupture strength) is a material property, defined as the stress in a
material just before it yields in a flexure test

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 Modulus of Rupture (MOR) Testing
• MOR is calculated as the “maximum fiber stress” on the
tension side at failure (strength parameter)

For a rectangular cross-section: For a circular cross-section:

𝐹𝐿
3𝐹𝐿 𝜎= 3
𝜎= 𝜋𝑟
2𝑏ℎ2

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 Factors affecting strength of ceramics
• Depends on the number of defects => giving stress concentration

• All brittle materials contain a

certain population of small cracks
with different
• sizes, orientations geometries

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𝑬 = 𝑬𝟎 (𝟏 − 𝟏. 𝟗𝑷 + 𝟎. 𝟗𝑷𝟐 )

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10 vol% porosity decreases
the flexural strength by 50%

𝜎𝑓𝑠 = 𝜎0 exp(−𝑛𝑃)

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 Mechanical properties versus
degree of crystallinity

• Crystalline phases are stronger.

• At low T’s, crystalline and non-crystalline phases are
brittle.
• At high T’s approaching Tm, non-crystalline phases are
ductile.

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Mechanical properties versus
degree of crystallinity

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Mechanical properties versus
degree of crystallinity

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 General Approach to Toughening Ceramics

General rule: Inhibit crack propagation

1. Reduce defect size

– Apply pressure during sintering – more expensive
– Adding sintering agents to reduce porosity – glassy intergranular phase
– Use small uniformly sized powders – more expensive

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 General Approach to Toughening Ceramics

General rule: Inhibit crack propagation

2. Crack deflection

Deflection of crack by appropriate particle in matrix

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General Approach to Toughening Ceramics

3. Crack bridging

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 General Approach to Toughening Ceramics

4. Induce microcrack formation and crack branching

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 General Approach to Toughening Ceramics

5. Phase transformation toughening

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 General Approach to Toughening Ceramics

5. Phase transformation toughening

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 General Approach to Toughening Ceramics

Summary

• Ceramics are made stronger through mechanisms which slow or

impede crack growth

• Often involves changes in the microstructure and/or composition

during processing

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