Investigating the microstructure and ballistic performance of strong B4C-TiB2 composites densified with Gas Pressure Sintering.
FAILLA S. 1, GALIZIA P. 1, TURAN S. 2, SAVACI U. 2, SCITI D. 1
1 National Research Council - Institute of Science, Technology and Sustainability for Ceramics (CNR-ISSMC), Faenza, Italy; 2 Eskisehir Technical University, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Eskisehir, Turkey
B4C-TiB2 composites with a 75/25 volume ratio were fabricated through pressureless sintering with and without gas pressure in the final stage of densification, using a new prototypal furnace. The densification was improved by high-energy milling, which introduced WC impurities that served as a sintering aid and resulted in the size reduction of the starting ceramic powders. For comparison, a B4C-TiB2 composite of the same composition and powder treatment was sintered using hot pressing. The gas pressure sintered ceramic showed better strength, stiffness, and toughness than the hot pressed composite when densified at 2050 °C, but lower hardness. Depth of Penetration tests on discs with thicknesses of 3, 4 and 5 mm and 50 mm of diameter showed that the gas pressure sintered material outperformed the hot-pressed material, and the results were confirmed through statistical analysis. The study also showed that hardness does not determine the best ballistic performance.