Dielectric Properties of Unfilled Tetragonal Tungsten Bronze Ba4PrFe(0.5)Nb(9.5)O(30) Ceramics

In order to found new dielectrics ceramics in tungsten bronze structure, unfilled tungsten bronze（TB） ceramics with nominal formula Ba4PrFe（0.5）Nb（9.5）O（30） were prepared by the solid state reaction method. The microstructure and dielectric properties were studied using powder X-ray diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscope, and variable temperature dielectric test system. The results show that the ceramics have a single phase and belong to the space group of P4bm with the cell of a = b = 12.4839（3） ？, c = 3.9409（5） ？, V = 614.192（2） ？3. The frequency dependent dielectrics properties show that the ceramics have a Debye-like relaxation at room temperature, while the temperature dependent dielectrics properties indicate that the ceramics are a relaxor and the relaxation is due to the nanopolars and oxygen vacancies. The ceramics have a potential application in electronic ceramics as temperature-stable multilayer ceramic capacitors.

Cordierite Ceramics Prepared from Poor Quality Kaolin for Electric Heater Supports: Sintering Process, Phase Transformation, Microstructure Evolution and Properties

To efficiently utilize the kaolin, an economical way of preparing cordierite ceramic with high performance for electric heater supports was put forward. In this study, sintering process, phase transformation, microstructure evolutions were systematically studied by heating microscope, X-ray diffraction, scanning electronic microscope and thermal analysis. Properties（physical properties, electrical properties and coefficient of thermal expansion（CTE）） were tested for comprehensive performance evaluation. The results showed that the utilization of poor quality kaolin broadened the firing range of cordierite ceramic which was from 1 200 to 1 380 ℃. Microstructure becomes loose with increasing of the pore size, which had significant influence on bending strength and electrical properties. High content of K2 O in poor quality kaolin was the reason for liquid phase generation in sintering process, which further leads to microstructural changes. The cordierite ceramic sintered at 1 320 ℃ had the properties as follows： CTE of 1.98×10^（-6） ℃^（-1）（500 ℃）, bending strength of 90 MPa, apparent porosity of 15.1%, dielectric constant of 7.5（100 Hz）, and volume resistivity of 1.05×109 Ω·cm（100 Hz）. The comprehensive properties are very suitable for use as electric heater supports.

Effects of metal binder on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Al2O3-based micro-nanocomposite ceramic tool material

The Al_2O_3-（W,Ti）C composites with Ni and Mo additions varying from 0vol% to 12vol% were prepared via hot pressing sintering under 30 MPa. The microstructure was investigated via X-ray diffraction（XRD） and scanning electron microscopy（SEM） equipped with energy dispersive spectrometry（EDS）. Mechanical properties such as flexural strength, fracture toughness, and Vickers hardness were also measured. Results show that the main phases A12O3 and（W,Ti）C were detected by XRD. Compound Mo Ni also existed in sintered nanocomposites. The fracture modes of the nanocomposites were both intergranular and transgranular fractures. The plastic deformation of metal particles and crack bridging were the main toughening mechanisms. The maximum flexural strength and fracture toughness were obtained for 9vol% and 12vol% additions of Ni and Mo, respectively. The hardness of the composites reduced gradually with increasing content of metals Ni and Mo.

Basic Properties of Concrete Incorporating Recycled Ceramic Aggregate and Ultra-fine Sand

Recycled ceramic mixed sand（RCMS） was obtained by partially replacing ultra-fine sand with recycled ceramic coarse sand（RCCS）. The effects of RCCS replacement rate on the apparent density, workability, compressive strength and splitting tensile strength of recycled ceramic concrete（RCC） were investigated. In addition, the relationship between the water-cement ratio and compressive strength of RCC was also studied. The experimental results indicate that the reusing of recycled ceramic aggregate can improve the cohesiveness and water retentiveness of fresh concrete and benefit the mechanical properties development. When the RCCS replacement rate is not less than 40%, the mechanical properties of RCC are superior to those of the reference concrete. Moreover, when recycled ceramic medium sand was completely used as fine aggregate, the maximum increase in both compressive strength and splitting tensile strength were obtained, comparing with those of reference concrete, the increment ratio was 19.85% and 32.73%, respectively. The microscopic analysis shows that the using of recycled ceramic aggregate can meliorate distinctly the structure of the interfacial transition zone（ITZ） and increase the compaction degree of cement paste. Furthermore, an expression of the compressive strength of RCC and the cement-water ratio is regressed and gains a good linear relativity. It is an effective way to recycle waste ceramic, and the consumption of recycled ceramic aggregate could reach from 26.9% to 47.6% of the total weight of aggregate in producing concrete.

MULTI-SCALE AND MULTI-PHASE NANOCOMPOSITE CERAMIC TOOLS AND CUTTING PERFORMANCE

An advanced ceramic cutting tool material Al2O3/TiC/TiN （LTN） is developed by incorporation and dispersion of micro-scale TiC particle and nano-scale TiN particle in alumina matrix. With the optimal dispersing and fabricating technology, this multi-scale and multi-phase nanocomposite ceramic tool material can get both higher flexural strength and fracture toughness than that of A1203/TiC （LZ） ceramic tool material without nano-scale TiN particle, especially the fracture toughness can reach to 7.8 MPa . m^0.5. The nano-scale TiN can lead to the grain fining effect and promote the sintering process to get a higher density. The coexisting transgranular and intergranular fracture mode induced by micro-scale TiC and nano-scale TiN, and the homogeneous and densified microstructure can result in a remarkable strengthening and toughening effect. The cutting performance and wear mechanisms of the advanced multi-scale and multi-phase nanocomposite ceramic cutting tool are researched.

STUDY ON STRUCTURE AND PROPERTY OF Nb-DOPED TiC CERAMIC WITH QUANTUM CHEMISTRY CALCULATIONS

Nb-doped TiC ceramic,or (NbyTi1-y) Cx,in which amount of Nb element added is increased from zero to 40Wt. %, synthisized -with self-propagating high temperature synthesis,is studied with SCF-Xa-DV,a quantum chemistry cal-culating method. The chemical bonding is studied to discuss the relation between structrues and properties. Several classes of models in which there is no vacancy,one vacancy or two vacan-cies have been calculated. From the calculated results of bond or-der, a measure of covalent bond strength,and molecule orbital contour map, it is concluded that when Nb element added in-creases, the vacancies increase correspondingly,the covalent com-ponent of chemical bonds of the samples decreases -while the met-al-bonding component increases, so the hardness and resistance of the samples decrease.

Effect of microstructure on the mechanical, thermal, and electronic property measurement of ceramic coatings

Ceramic materials were investigated as thermal barrier coatings and electrolytes. Electrophoretic deposition（EPD） and physical vapor deposition（PVD） were employed to fabricate samples, and the mechanical properties and microstructure were examined by nanoindentation and microscopy, respectively. Yttria-stabilized zirconia/alumina（YSZ/Al2O3） composite coatings, a candidate for thermal barrier coatings, yield a kinky, rather than smooth, load–displacement curve. Scanning electron microscope（SEM） examination reveals that the kinky curve is because of the porous microstructure and cracks are caused by the compression of the indenter. Li0.34La0.51 Ti O2.94（LLTO） on Si/Sr Ru O3（Si/SRO） substrates, an ionic conductor in nature, demonstrates electronic performance. Although SEM images show a continuous and smooth microstructure, a close examination of the microstructure by transmission electron microscopy（TEM） reveals that the observed spikes indicate electronic performance. Therefore, we can conclude that ceramic coatings could serve multiple purposes but their properties are microstructure-dependent.

Current Status and Prospect of Infrared Radiation Ceramics for Energy-saving Applications in High Temperature Furnaces

Nowadays,it is a great challenge to reduce energy consumption and exhaust emission for human activities,in particular,high temperature industries.Among many efforts made to realize energy savings for high temperature furnaces and kilns,the use of high emissivity materials is considered to be an effective route to increase their thermal efficiency by enhancing heat transfer.Most materials with high refractoriness and superior chemical stability have weak infrared absorption and radiation properties;however,their emissivity in infrared regions（1 —25 μm） could be effectively increased by ion doping.This is attributed to three main mechanisms：1） distortion of the crystal lattice;2） increase of free carrier absorption; 3） formation of impurity energy level.In this paper,the development and advancement of various material systems with high emissivity including non-oxides and oxide based ceramics were reviewed.It is also suggested that the establishment of evaluation models or instruments for energy savings would be beneficial to design and application of high emissivity materials in various high-temperature environment.Furthermore,more efforts should be made on durability of high emissivity materials at high service temperatures and on the standardization of testing methods for emissivity.

Sintering characteristics and microwave dielectric properties of 0.5Ca_(0.6)La_(0.267)TiO_3-0.5Ca(Mg_(1/3)Nb_(2/3))O_3 ceramics prepared by reaction-sintering process

0.5 Ca（0.6La0.267TiO3-0.5 Ca（Mg1/3Nb2/3）O3（5 CLT-5 CMN） ceramics were prepared by a reaction-sintering process and their sintering characteristics, microwave dielectric properties were investigated in detail.Without any calcination stage involved,a mixture of CaCO_3, La_2 O_3, TiO_2, MgO and Nb_2 O_5 was pressed and sintered directly. Pure phase 5 CLT-5 CMN ceramics with high density and dense microstructure can be obtained after sintered at 1400 ℃ for 4 h. Compared with those prepared by the conventional ceramic route, 5 CLT-5 CMN ceramics produced by the reaction-sintering process exhibit slightly higher dielectric constant and Q×f value. Fine microwave dielectric properties of ε_r= 56.4, Q×f= 48,550 GHz and T_f = ＋8.7 ppm/℃ for 5 CLT-5 CMN ceramics sintered at 1400 ℃ for 4 h are obtained, suggesting reactionsintering process is a simple and efficient method to produce pure phase 5 CLT-5 CMN ceramics as a potential candidate for the fabrication of microwave devices.

Reaction Mechanism and Microstructure Evolution of Reaction Sintered h-BN

Hexagonal boron nitride ceramic（h-BN） based on the nitridation of B powders was obtained by reaction sintering method. The effects of sintering temperature on the mechanical properties and microstructure of the resultant products were investigated and the reaction mechanism was discussed. Results showed that the reaction between B and N2 occurred vigorously at temperatures ranging from 1 000 ℃ to 1 300 ℃, which resulted in the generation of t-BN. When the temperature exceeded 1 450 ℃, transformation from t-BN to h-BN began to occur. As the sintering temperature increased, the spherical particles of t-BN gradually transformed into fine sheet particles of h-BN. These particles subsequently displayed a compact arrangement to achieve a more uniform microstructure, thereby increasing the strength.

Active metal brazing of SiO2–BN ceramic and Ti plate with Ag–Cu–Ti＋BN composite filler

SiO2–BN ceramic and Ti plate were joined by active brazing in vacuum with Ag–Cu–Ti＋BN composite filler.The effect of BN content,brazing temperature and time on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the brazed joints was investigated.The results showed that a continuous Ti N–Ti B2reaction layer formed adjacent to the SiO2–BN ceramic,whose thickness played a key role in the bonding properties.Four Ti–Cu compound layers,Ti2Cu,Ti3Cu4,Ti Cu2and Ti Cu4,were observed to border Ti substrate due to the strong affinity of Ti and Cu compared with Ag.The central part of the joint was composed of Ag matrix,over which some fine-grains distributed.The added BN particles reacted with Ti in the liquid filler to form fine Ti B whiskers and Ti N particles with low coefficients of thermal expansion（CTE）,leading to the reduction of detrimental residual stress in the joint,and thus improving the joint strength.The maximum shear strength of 31 MPa was obtained when 3 wt%BN was added in the composite filler,which was 158%higher than that brazed with single Ag–Cu–Ti filler metal.The morphology and thickness of the reaction layer adjacent to the parent materials changed correspondingly with the increase of BN content,brazing temperature and holding time.Based on the correlation between the microstructural evolution and brazing parameters,the bonding mechanism of SiO2–BN and Ti was discussed.

Dielectric and Electrical Transport Properties of the Fe^(3+)-doped CaCu_3Ti_4O_(12)

CaCu（3-x）FexTi4O（12）（x=0, 0.015, 0.03, 0.045, 0.06） ceramics were synthesized by sol-gel method. The electrical conduction and dielectric measurements show that the doping of a very small amount of Fe（3＋） ions greatly reduces the low-frequency dielectric constants and leakage, and enhances grain resistivity. For the doped samples, the appearance of the strong low-frequency peaks in the spectra of dielectric loss confirms that the doping of Fe（3＋） ions induces the contact-electrode effect on ceramic surface. These great changes of electrical properties may originate from the reduced amount of oxygen vacancies by doping Fe（3＋）

Effect of temperature on phase transition behavior of antiferroelectric (Pb_(0.97)La_(0.02) )(Zr_(0.75)Sn_(0.25-x)Ti_x)O_3 ceramics

Pb0：97La0：02（Zr0：75Sn0：25x Ti x/O3（x D0.10, 0.105, 0.11）（PLZST） antiferroelectric ceramics with highly preferred-（110） orientation were successfully fabricated via the conventional solid-state reaction method.The antiferroelectric nature of PLZST ceramics induced by electric field was demonstrated by the dielectric constant-temperature（D-T） and the polarization-electric field（P-E） measurement. Typical phase transition from ferroelectric（FE） to antiferroelectric（AFE）, and then to paraelectric（PE） is obtained. The results indicate that the phase transition behavior is suppressed with increasing of x, and T c is remarkably shifted to higher temperature of168 ℃, 170 ℃ and 174 ℃, respectively. Besides, high phase transition current（110 6A, 810 7A and 610 7A, respectively） is obtained with temperature induced. Consequently, the excellent electric properties and the restraint between temperature and electric field would provide basis on the application of PLZST antiferroelectric ceramics in microelectronic integrated systems and sophisticated weapons systems.

Flexural Strength and Weibull Analysis of Bulk Metallic Glasses

The flexural strength reliability of bulk metallic glasses （BMGs） plates is analyzed using Weibull statistics. The Weibull modulus （m） and characteristic strength （σ0） of the Zr48Cu45AI7 BMG are 34 and 2630 MPa, respectively, which are much higher than the values of fine ceramics （m 〈 30, σ0 〈 1600 MPa）. In particular, the m values obtained by flexural strength and compressive strength statistics of the Mg61Cu28Gd11 BMG are 5 and 33, respectively, indicating that the m values of BMGs are test method dependent, and only the m values obtained by flexural strength statistics can be used to make a convincible comparison with those of ceramics.