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NIST Structural Ceramics Database (SCD) Database

NIST Standard Reference Database 30

Last Update to Data Content: 2002

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.18434/T4F30D

SCD Citation Number: Z00006

Bibliographic Information

Reference:
"Influence of Thermal Quenching on Surface Fracture Toughness and Microhardness of Si3N4, SiAlON, and SiC," D. Chakraborty, A.K. Mukhopadhyay, and J. Mukerji, Revue Internationale des Hautes Temperatures et des Refractaires, Vol. 22, pp. 105-113 (1985), published by Masson.
Language: English

General Materials Processing Notes

Material #1, Si3N4 (HP), contained 2.5% MgO or Y2O3. Material #2, Si3N4 (LPS) was prepared by sintering alpha-Si3N4 powder to theoretical density with nitrogen rich liquid at 1725 °C in N2. Material #3 was SiC with B and C as sintering aids. Material #4 was β-sialon prepared by hot pressing a mixture of Si3N4, AlN, and Al2O3 at 1700 °C. Material #5 was α-sialon prepared by hot pressing 50 % to 60 % Si3N4, 4 % to 5 % Y2O3, and 36 % to 45 % AlN.

Measurement Methods

Vickers indentation
The authors cite D. Chakraborty et al., J. Mater. Sci. 15 (1981) 3051 and summarize the procedure as follows. The measurements were made by Vickers indentation method. Leitz Miniload Hardness Tester was used. Samples were mounted in resin, ground, and mechanically polished with diamond paste. Quenching was performed as follows: the specimen was heated in a platinum tube furnace, soaked 30 min then dropped within seconds into silicone oil with a viscosity of (100 µm2/s = 100 centistoke).

Index of Materials and Properties (Click on a selected Material Number to expand material properties menu)

Material Number 1: Si3N4

Material Specification and Properties for Si3N4

Material number 1 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Chemical Class: Nitride
Chemical Family: Si-N
Formula: Si3N4
Informal Name: silicon nitride
Structure Type: Polycrystalline
Process: Hot Pressing

Si3N4

Material number 1 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Elemental Composition
Amount of
Element
( formula units ) 		Element
 
( no unit )
3 Si
4 N
Measurement Method: Reported Formula
Evaluation Status: Unevaluated

Si3N4

Material number 1 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Fracture Toughness
Number of
Quenches
  		Quenching
Temperature
( °C ) 		Measurement
Temperature
( °C ) 		Fracture
Toughness
( MPa m1/2 )
0 1300 22 4.1
1 1300 22 4.9
2 1300 22 4.1
3 1300 22 4.0
4 1300 22 3.8
10 1300 22 4.1
20 1300 22 3.8
0 1400 22 4.1
1 1400 22 4.8
2 1400 22 4.9
3 1400 22 4.2
4 1400 22 4.1
10 1400 22 3.7
15 1400 22 4.0
20 1400 22 3.6
0 1500 22 4.2
1 1500 22 5.0
3 1500 22 4.3
4 1500 22 4.3
10 1500 22 3.8
15 1500 22 3.4
20 1500 22 2.9
Measurement Method: Vickers indentation
Evaluation Status: Evaluated by acceptance criteria
Cautions:
Digitized data were obtained from Figure 1 of the paper.

Si3N4

Material number 1 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Hardness
Number of
Quenches
  		Quenching
Temperature
( °C ) 		Measurement
Temperature
( °C ) 		Hardness
 
( GPa )
0 1300 22 20.29
1 1300 22 20.69
2 1300 22 19.80
3 1300 22 19.70
4 1300 22 19.61
10 1300 22 19.02
15 1300 22 18.53
20 1300 22 17.94
0 1400 22 20.29
1 1400 22 19.80
2 1400 22 17.94
3 1400 22 17.45
4 1400 22 18.24
10 1400 22 16.47
15 1400 22 15.88
20 1400 22 16.27
0 1500 22 20.69
1 1500 22 18.43
2 1500 22 18.43
3 1500 22 16.67
4 1500 22 15.88
10 1500 22 13.53
15 1500 22 12.55
20 1500 22 11.67
Measurement Method: Vickers indentation
Evaluation Status: Evaluated by acceptance criteria
Cautions:
Digitized data were obtained from Figure 6 of the paper.
Material Number 2: Si3N4

Material Specification and Properties for Si3N4

Material number 2 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Chemical Class: Nitride
Chemical Family: Si-N
Formula: Si3N4
Informal Name: silicon nitride
Structure Type: Polycrystalline
Manufacturer: In-House
Process: Liquid Phase Sintering

Si3N4

Material number 2 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Elemental Composition
Amount of
Element
( formula units ) 		Element
 
( no unit )
3 Si
4 N
Measurement Method: Reported Formula
Evaluation Status: Unevaluated

Si3N4

Material number 2 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Fracture Toughness
Number of
Quenches
  		Quenching
Temperature
( °C ) 		Measurement
Temperature
( °C ) 		Fracture
Toughness
( MPa m1/2 )
0 1300 22 3.6
1 1300 22 3.7
2 1300 22 3.6
3 1300 22 3.4
4 1300 22 3.6
10 1300 22 3.5
15 1300 22 3.5
20 1300 22 3.5
0 1400 22 3.5
1 1400 22 4.3
2 1400 22 4.5
3 1400 22 4.3
4 1400 22 4.1
10 1400 22 4.1
15 1400 22 4.0
20 1400 22 4.0
0 1500 22 4.1
1 1500 22 5.4
2 1500 22 4.3
3 1500 22 4.0
4 1500 22 3.5
10 1500 22 3.6
15 1500 22 3.5
20 1500 22 3.1
Measurement Method: Vickers indentation
Evaluation Status: Evaluated by acceptance criteria
Cautions:
Digitized data were obtained from Figure 2 of the paper.

Si3N4

Material number 2 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Hardness
Number of
Quenches
  		Quenching
Temperature
( °C ) 		Measurement
Temperature
( °C ) 		Hardness
 
( GPa )
0 1300 22 16.27
1 1300 22 16.18
2 1300 22 16.18
3 1300 22 16.37
4 1300 22 15.69
10 1300 22 16.47
15 1300 22 16.37
20 1300 22 15.98
0 1400 22 15.88
1 1400 22 15.88
2 1400 22 15.39
3 1400 22 15.98
4 1400 22 15.39
10 1400 22 16.08
15 1400 22 14.70
20 1400 22 13.04
0 1500 22 18.82
1 1500 22 20.59
2 1500 22 17.55
3 1500 22 17.65
4 1500 22 17.65
10 1500 22 17.06
15 1500 22 17.55
20 1500 22 16.27
Measurement Method: Vickers indentation
Evaluation Status: Evaluated by acceptance criteria
Cautions:
Digitized data were obtained from Figure 7 of the paper.
Material Number 3: SiC

Material Specification and Properties for SiC

Material number 3 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Chemical Class: Carbide
Chemical Family: Si-C
Formula: SiC
Informal Name: silicon carbide
Structure Type: Polycrystalline
Manufacturer: General Electric Company
Process: Sintering

SiC

Material number 3 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Elemental Composition
Amount of
Element
( formula units ) 		Element
 
( no unit )
1 Si
1 C
Measurement Method: Reported Formula
Evaluation Status: Unevaluated

SiC

Material number 3 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Fracture Toughness
Number of
Quenches
  		Quenching
Temperature
( °C ) 		Measurement
Temperature
( °C ) 		Fracture
Toughness
( MPa m1/2 )
0 1300 22 2.6
1 1300 22 2.7
10 1300 22 2.9
15 1300 22 2.7
20 1300 22 2.4
0 1400 22 2.8
1 1400 22 2.6
2 1400 22 2.3
10 1400 22 2.6
15 1400 22 2.2
20 1400 22 2.1
0 1500 22 3.0
1 1500 22 3.1
2 1500 22 2.7
3 1500 22 2.1
4 1500 22 2.2
10 1500 22 2.1
15 1500 22 2.1
20 1500 22 2.3
Measurement Method: Vickers indentation
Evaluation Status: Evaluated by acceptance criteria
Cautions:
Digitized data were obtained from Figure 5 of the paper.

SiC

Material number 3 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Hardness
Number of
Quenches
  		Quenching
Temperature
( °C ) 		Measurement
Temperature
( °C ) 		Hardness
 
( GPa )
0 1300 22 31.4
1 1300 22 32.3
10 1300 22 30.3
15 1300 22 31.1
20 1300 22 27.5
0 1400 22 31.9
2 1400 22 31.3
10 1400 22 30.6
15 1400 22 30.4
20 1400 22 29.1
0 1500 22 31.0
1 1500 22 32.1
2 1500 22 30.1
3 1500 22 30.1
4 1500 22 30.2
10 1500 22 28.9
15 1500 22 29.2
20 1500 22 28.0
Measurement Method: Vickers indentation
Evaluation Status: Evaluated by acceptance criteria
Cautions:
Digitized data were obtained from Figure 8 of the paper.
Material Number 4: Si 6-xAl xO xN 8-x

Material Specification and Properties for Si6-xAlxOxN8-x

Material number 4 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Chemical Class: Oxynitride
Chemical Family: Si-Al-O-N
Formula: Si6-xAlxOxN8-x
Informal Name: sialon (beta)
Structure Type: Polycrystalline
Process: Hot Pressing

Si6-xAlxOxN8-x

Material number 4 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Elemental Composition
Amount of
Element
( formula units ) 		Element
 
( no unit )
6-x Si
x Al
x O
8-x N
Measurement Method: Reported Formula
Evaluation Status: Unevaluated

Si6-xAlxOxN8-x

Material number 4 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Fracture Toughness
Number of
Quenches
  		Quenching
Temperature
( °C ) 		Measurement
Temperature
( °C ) 		Fracture
Toughness
( MPa m1/2 )
0 1300 22 1.9
1 1300 22 2.1
2 1300 22 2.5
3 1300 22 3.6
4 1300 22 2.4
10 1300 22 2.7
15 1300 22 2.2
20 1300 22 2.2
0 1400 22 2.3
1 1400 22 2.1
2 1400 22 2.4
3 1400 22 2.3
4 1400 22 2.3
10 1400 22 2.3
15 1400 22 2.2
20 1400 22 2.3
0 1500 22 2.1
1 1500 22 3.3
2 1500 22 2.2
3 1500 22 2.4
4 1500 22 2.5
10 1500 22 1.9
15 1500 22 2.1
20 1500 22 2.0
Measurement Method: Vickers indentation Evaluation Status: Evaluated by acceptance criteria
Cautions:
Data were digitized from Fig. 3 of the reference.

Si6-xAlxOxN8-x

Material number 4 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Hardness
Number of
Quenches
  		Quenching
Temperature
( °C ) 		Measurement
Temperature
( °C ) 		Hardness
 
( GPa )
0 1300 22 18.2
1 1300 22 17.7
2 1300 22 17.6
3 1300 22 17.0
4 1300 22 17.6
10 1300 22 17.5
15 1300 22 17.7
20 1300 22 17.7
0 1400 22 16.9
1 1400 22 16.0
2 1400 22 16.2
3 1400 22 16.2
4 1400 22 16.1
10 1400 22 16.6
15 1400 22 15.2
20 1400 22 15.3
0 1500 22 17.7
1 1500 22 17.9
2 1500 22 18.5
3 1500 22 17.7
4 1500 22 17.9
10 1500 22 17.0
15 1500 22 16.8
20 1500 22 17.2
Measurement Method: Vickers indentation
Evaluation Status: Evaluated by acceptance criteria
Cautions:
Digitized data were obtained from Figure 8 of the paper.
Material Number 5: Y xSi 12-4.5xAl 4.5xO 1.5xN 16-1.5x

Material Specification and Properties for YxSi12-4.5xAl4.5xO1.5xN16-1.5x

Material number 5 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Chemical Class: Oxynitride
Chemical Family: Si-Al-O-N
Formula: YxSi12-4.5xAl4.5xO1.5xN16-1.5x
Structure Type: Polycrystalline
Process: Hot Pressing

YxSi12-4.5xAl4.5xO1.5xN16-1.5x

Material number 5 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Fracture Toughness
Number of
Quenches
  		Quenching
Temperature
( °C ) 		Measurement
Temperature
( °C ) 		Fracture
Toughness
( MPa m1/2 )
0 1300 22 2.6
1 1300 22 2.3
2 1300 22 2.5
3 1300 22 2.6
4 1300 22 2.3
10 1300 22 2.4
15 1300 22 2.7
20 1300 22 2.2
0 1400 22 2.5
1 1400 22 2.4
2 1400 22 2.8
3 1400 22 2.7
10 1400 22 2.7
15 1400 22 2.8
20 1400 22 2.9
0 1500 22 2.8
1 1500 22 3.0
2 1500 22 2.7
3 1500 22 3.0
4 1500 22 2.4
10 1500 22 2.6
15 1500 22 2.2
20 1500 22 2.3
Measurement Method: Vickers indentation
Evaluation Status: Evaluated by acceptance criteria
Cautions:
Data were digitized from Fig. 4 of the reference.

YxSi12-4.5xAl4.5xO1.5xN16-1.5x

Material number 5 of 5
in SCD Citation Number: Z00006
Hardness
Number of
Quenches
  		Quenching
Temperature
( °C ) 		Measurement
Temperature
( °C ) 		Hardness
 
( GPa )
0 1300 22 22.0
1 1300 22 21.3
2 1300 22 21.9
3 1300 22 22.1
4 1300 22 22.5
10 1300 22 22.4
15 1300 22 22.1
20 1300 22 22.4
0 1400 22 23.9
1 1400 22 24.3
2 1400 22 23.6
3 1400 22 24.2
4 1400 22 23.5
10 1400 22 23.3
15 1400 22 22.6
20 1400 22 23.1
0 1500 22 22.4
1 1500 22 23.0
2 1500 22 23.7
3 1500 22 21.4
4 1500 22 22.2
10 1500 22 21.8
15 1500 22 20.9
20 1500 22 21.1
Measurement Method: Vickers indentation
Evaluation Status: Evaluated by acceptance criteria
Cautions:
Digitized data were obtained from Figure 8 of the paper.