Journal of the American Ceramic Society, Vol.103, No.12, 7072-7081, 2020
Short SiC fiber/Ti(3)SiC(2)MAX phase composites: Fabrication and creep evaluation
The compressive creep of silicon carbide fiber reinforced Ti(3)SiC(2)MAX phase with both fine and coarse microstructure was investigated in the temperature range of 1000-1300 degrees C. Comparison of only steady-state creep was done to understand the response of fabricated composite materials toward creep deformation. It was demonstrated that the fibers are more effective in reducing the creep rates for the coarse microstructure by an increase in activation energy compared to the variant with a finer microstructure, being partly a result of the enhanced creep rates for the microstructure with larger grain size. Grain boundary sliding along with fiber fracture appears to be the main creep mechanism for most of the tested temperature range. However, there are indications for a changed creep mechanism for the fine microstructure for the lowest testing temperature. Local pores are formed to accommodate differences in strain related to creeping matrix and predominantly elastically deformed fibers during creep. Microstructural analysis was done on the material before and after creep to understand the deformation mechanics.