Abstract
The mechanical properties of porous ceramics are greatly influenced by their microstructure. Therefore, mechanical behavior of highly porous ceramics is different from that of dense ceramics. In this work, we evaluate different mechanical testing methods such as static compression, Brazilian disc test and 3-point bending on their suitability for comparison of highly porous ceramic materials. It is shown that 3-point bending is more suitable than static compression or Brazilian disc testing, as the material exhibits no critical crack propagation under compressive loading. With 3-point bending tests, a quantitative comparison of the mechanical properties of foams with different microstructures and porosities is possible. Under cyclic compression the foams exhibit a very high degree of crack tolerance in combination with preservation of their structural integrity even at high strains of 10%.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
A. Pyzik, R. Ziebarth, C. Han, and K. Yang: High-porosity acicular mullite ceramics for multifunctional diesel particulate filters. Int. J. Appl. Ceram. Technol. 8(5), 1059–1066 (2011).
J.C. Blome: Molten metal filter. U.S. Patent No 4265659, May 5, 1981.
A.R. Studart, U.T. Gonzenbach, E. Tervoort, and L.J. Gauckler: Processing routes to macroporous ceramics: A review. J. Am. Ceram. Soc. 89(6), 1771–1789 (2006).
K. Schwartzwalder and A.V. Somers: Method of making porous ceramic articles. U.S. Patent No 3090094, 1963.
K.W. Schlichting, N.P. Padture, and P.G. Klemens: Thermal conductivity of dense and porous yttria-stabilized zirconia. J. Mater. Sci. 36(12), 3003–3010 (2001).
U.T. Gonzenbach, A.R. Studart, E. Tervoort, and L.J. Gauckler: Macroporous ceramics from particle-stabilized wet foams. J. Am. Ceram. Soc. 90(1), 16–22 (2007).
L.J. Gibson and M.F. Ashby: Cellular Solids Structure and Properties (Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK, 1997).
C.Q. Dam, R. Brezny, and D.J. Green: Compressive behavior and deformation-mode map of an open cell alumina. J. Mater. Res. 5(1), 163–171 (1990).
R. Brezny and D.J. Green: The effect of cell-size on the mechanical-behavior of cellular materials. Acta Metall. Mater. 38(12), 2517–2526 (1990).
ASTM C1161: Standard Test Method for Flexural Strength of Advanced Ceramics at Ambient Temperature. Standard (2002).
ASTM C1674: Standard Test Method for Flexural Strength of Advanced Ceramics with Engineered Porosity (Honeycomb Cellular Channels) at Ambient Temperatures. Standard (2011).
ASTM C1424: Standard Test Method for Monotonic Compressive Strength of Advanced Ceramics at Ambient Temperature. Standard (2010).
ASTM C1326: Standard Test Method for Knoop Indentation Hardness of Advanced Ceramics. Standard (2008).
ASTM C1327: Standard Test Method for Vickers Indentation Hardness of Advanced Ceramics. Standard (2008).
A. Borger, P. Supancic, and R. Danzer: The ball on three balls test for strength testing of brittle discs: Stress distribution in the disc. J. Eur. Ceram. Soc. 22(9–10), 1425–1436 (2002).
R. Danzer, P. Supancic, and W. Harrer: Biaxial tensile strength test for brittle rectangular plates. J. Ceram. Soc. Jpn. 114(1335), 1054–1060 (2006).
H. Fessler and D.C. Fricker: A theoretical analysis of the ring-on-ring loading disk test. J. Am. Ceram. Soc. 67(9), 582–588 (1984).
H. Fessler and D.C. Fricker: Multiaxial strength tests for brittle materials. J. Strain Anal. Eng. Des. 19(3), 197–208 (1984).
C. Rasch and W. Kollenberg: A modified “Brazilian” disk test - an indirect method to determine the tensile strength of ceramics. 48. Internationales Feuerfest-Kolloquium. (2005).
U.T. Gonzenbach, A.R. Studart, E. Tervoort, and L.J. Gauckler: Ultrastable particle-stabilized foams. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 45(21), 3526–3530 (2006).
U.T. Gonzenbach, A.R. Studart, E. Tervoort, and L.J. Gauckler: Stabilization of foams with inorganic colloidal particles. Langmuir 22(26), 10983–10988 (2006).
U.T. Gonzenbach, A.R. Studart, D. Steinlin, E. Tervoort, and L.J. Gauckler: Processing of particle-stabilized wet foams into porous ceramics. J. Am. Ceram. Soc. 90(11), 3407–3414 (2007).
U.T. Gonzenbach, A.R. Studart, E. Tervoort, and L.J. Gauckler: Tailoring the microstructure of particle-stabilized wet foams. Langmuir 23(3), 1025–1032 (2007).
B.S.M. Seeber, U.T. Gonzenbach, U. Ebneter, and L.J. Gauckler: Microstructural analysis of highly porous alumina foams, to be submitted.
P. Colombo, A. Arcaro, A. Francesconi, D. Pavarin, D. Rondini, and S. Debei: Effect of hypervelocity impact on microcellular ceramic foams from a preceramic polymer. Adv. Eng. Mater. 5(11), 802–805 (2003).
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank Mario Mücklich for his help with the sample preparation, Peter Kocher and Linus Ender for their help with the mechanical measurements as well as the Commission for Technology and Innovation CTI, Switzerland, for the financial contribution.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Seeber, B.S.M., Gonzenbach, U.T. & Gauckler, L.J. Mechanical properties of highly porous alumina foams. Journal of Materials Research 28, 2281–2287 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1557/jmr.2013.102
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1557/jmr.2013.102