Solid particle erosion of SiC and SiC–TiB 2 composite hot-pressed with Y 2O 3

Abstract

The solid particle erosion of the hot-pressed monolithic SiC and SiC–TiB 2 particulate composite by angular SiC particles was investigated at room temperature over a range of particle sizes (50–150 μm), velocities (40–100 m/s) and impact angles (30–90°) by weight loss measurements. The erosion of both materials exhibits an anomalous particle size dependence and evidences of plastic deformation together with grain pull-out are observed in the eroded surfaces. The erosion rates of these materials do not increase monotonically with increasing particle size, presumably due to the erodent fragmentation. The velocity exponents are less than 2, which is attributed to the grain pull-out and erodent fragmentation. In addition, the erosion rate is higher for the SiC–TiB 2 composite with higher fracture toughness but lower hardness compared to monolithic SiC indicating that the erosion of these materials is controlled significantly by the plastic deformation.