Zirconium-diboride silicon-carbide composites: A review

Zirconium diboride (ZrB₂) and silicon carbide (SiC) composites have long been of interest since it was observed that ZrB₂ improved the thermal shock resistance of SiC. However, processing of these materials can be difficult due to high and different sintering temperatures and differences in the thermodynamic stability of each material. ZrB₂–SiC composites have been processed in a variety of ways including hot-pressing, spark-plasma sintering, reactive melt infiltration, pack cementation, chemical vapor deposition, chemical vapor infiltration, stereolithography, direct ink writing, selective laser sintering, electron beam melting, and binder jet additive manufacturing. Each manufacturing method has its own pros and cons. This review serves to summarize more than 60 years of research and provide a coherent resource for the variety of methods and advancements in development of ZrB₂–SiC composites.     

Mathematical law of size effect on the flexural property of ceramics

Brittle materials generally exhibit size effects, and the mechanical properties of these materials degrade significantly with an increase in size. However, the mathematical law governing the attenuation degree of mechanical properties with the increase in size is still unknown. In this study, maximum loads of differently sized ceramic test strips were subjected to three point bending tests under two working conditions of equal spans and span amplifications, respectively. Subsequently, the theoretical maximum loads of materials were calculated using the finite element method (FEM). By calculating the difference between the calculated values and the actual maximum loads, the attenuation of mechanical properties of ceramic samples were observed. The results show that the theoretical mechanical properties and the performance attenuation caused by the size effect tend to increase according to the following equation: y=ax³+bx²+cx+d. Therefore, mechanical properties and performance attenuation of any sample exhibiting a size within the experimental range can be predicted by a mathematical law, which was obtained through mechanical tests results of four samples with different sizes. The obtained mathematical law holds great significance for predicting the mechanical properties of materials under size effects.     

Influence of substrate temperature on the microstructure of YSZ films and their application as the insulating layer of thin film sensors for harsh temperature environments

Thin film sensors are employed to monitor the health of hot-section components of aeroengine intelligence (for instance, blades), and electrical insulating layers are needed between the metal components and thin film sensors. For this purpose, the electrical insulation characteristics of an yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ)/Al₂O₃ multilayer insulating structure were investigated. First, YSZ thin films were deposited by DC reactive sputtering at various substrate temperatures, and the microstructural features were investigated by scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction. The results indicate that the micromorphology of the YSZ thin film gradually became denser with increasing substrate temperature, and no new phases appeared. The compact and uniform topography of the YSZ thin film improved the insulation properties of the multilayer insulating structure and enhanced the adhesion of the thin film sensors. In addition, the electrical insulation properties of the YSZ/Al₂O₃ multilayer insulating structure were evaluated via insulation resistance tests from 25 to 800 °C, in which the YSZ thin film was deposited at 550 °C. The results show that the insulation resistance of the multilayer structure increased by an order of magnitude compared with that of the conventional Al₂O₃ insulating layer, reaching 135 kΩ (5.1 × 10^?6 S/m) at 800 °C. Notably, the insulation resistance was still greater than 75 kΩ after annealing at 800 °C for 5 h. Finally, the shunt effect of the YSZ/Al₂O₃ multilayer insulating structure was estimated using a PdCr thin film strain gauge. The relative resistance error was 0.24%, which demonstrates that the YSZ/Al₂O₃ multilayer insulating structure is suitable for thin film sensors.     

Novel Bi4O5Br2/MnxZn1-xFe2O4 magnetic composite with an enhanced photodegradation activity and excellent recyclability

Bi₄O₅Br₂/Mn_xZn_1-xFe₂O₄ nanocomposites with impressive photocatalytic and recyclability properties were synthesised using a microemulsion method. In addition to the photocatalytic effect, the crystal structure and morphology, photoelectrochemical characteristics, magnetic effect and photocatalytic mechanism of Bi₄O₅Br₂/Mn_xZn_1-xFe₂O₄ were also investigated. As the best sample, the removal rate of the Bi₄O₅Br₂/Mn_xZn_1-xFe₂O₄ photocatalyst with 7.5 wt% Mn_xZn_1-xFe₂O₄ to rhodamine B (RhB) reached up to 99.4% within 60 min. The enhanced photocatalyst activity was mainly attributed to the type-II heterojunction formed between Bi₄O₅Br₂ and Mn_xZn_1-xFe₂O₄, which not only optimised the energy band structure, but also led to the building of an interior electromagnetic field within the Bi₄O₅Br₂/Mn_xZn_1-xFe₂O₄ heterojunction. Meanwhile, the constantly producing and migrating h⁺ and ·O₂^? were the main active components. In particular, the results of the saturation magnetization tests and magnetic recovery experiments revealed that the magnetic composite photocatalyst can be recovered effectively. The results of the removal rate of RhB remaining at 85.2% after five uses reflected the advantages of the stability of the Bi₄O₅Br₂/Mn_xZn_1-xFe₂O₄ photocatalyst. In brief, this paper presented an original idea to develop a novel composite magnetic photocatalyst and research the enhancement mechanism of photocatalysis.     

Numerical Investigation of the Capture of Polydisperse Particles by Charged Droplets

The capture of particles by charged droplets was simulated by considering the electrostatic interactions of droplet-droplet and droplet-particle. The results indicate that the electrostatic repulsion between droplets leads to a dynamic accumulation mode of particles. However, the droplet spacing has an insignificant effect on the capture efficiency when the electrostatic deposition predominates. The increase of droplet charge remarkably improves the capture efficiency, in which the capture of fine particles accounts for the largest proportion. Compared to the droplet charge, the droplet size shows a limited improvement in the capture efficiency. Reducing the droplet velocity prolongs the capture time instead of enhancing the capture capacity per unit time, thereby improving capture efficiency.     

Influence of the SiC matrix introduction time on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Cf/Hf0.5Zr0.5C-SiC ultra-high temperature composites

C_f/Hf_0.5Zr_0.5C-SiC composites were prepared by introducing Hf_0.5Zr_0.5C matrix (11 cycles) and SiC matrix (9 cycles) into the carbon cloth preform through precursor impregnation and pyrolysis (PIP) process. The influence of the introduction time of SiC matrix on the microstructure and mechanical properties of C_f/Hf_0.5Zr_0.5C-SiC composites was studied, and the results show that with the increase of the PIP cycles of the SiC matrix introduced before Hf_0.5Zr_0.5C matrix, the composite open porosity decreased, and the flexural strength and modulus presented an obvious upward trend. CS45 sample, which has 4 cycles of PIP SiC introduced in advance, has the highest flexural strength, flexural modulus and interfacial shear strength of 402.73 ± 35.73 MPa, 56.92 ± 3.97 GPa and 100.88 ± 7.79 MPa, respectively. Hf_0.5Zr_0.5C matrix has a loose and porous structure, so when more SiC matrix was introduced in advance, its covering effect on the surface of fibers led to less intra-bundle pores and thusly denser composite structure, and due to the compactness of SiC matrix, better overall bonding of fiber, interface and matrix was achieved, as well as better load transfer effect, which led to obvious interfacial debonding and cracking based on the in-situ SEM observation during flexural tests. While in the sample without pre-introduced SiC, the cracking occurred mainly between the interface and porous matrix and the overall performance of the material was poor.     

Ag nanoparticles-polypyrrole-carbon black/mesoporous TiO2 novel nanocomposite as ultrafast visible-light-driven photocatalyst

Effective design and fabrication of novel visible light-oriented photocatalysts is an existing challenging task that requires further dedicated efforts, and it has been always a main concern among the scientific community. This study deals with the design and fabrication of an extremely active and ultrafast ternary photocatalyst based on Ag nanoparticles, polypyrrole doped carbon black (PPy-C) and mesoporous TiO₂ (m-TiO₂). Sol-gel methodology along with sonication and photodeposition routes have been employed for the successful creation of the ternary framework. Ternary photocatalyst composed of uniform spherical titania nanoparticles (10–15 nm in size) perfectly intermingled with the polymeric linkage of PPy-C. Fruitful creation of unique trio photocatalyst between AgNPs, PPy-C and m-TiO₂ was confirmed by XPS and XRD. FTIR analysis further supports the development of nanocomposite photocatalyst. TEM analysis showed uniform spherical m-TiO₂ nanoparticles (10–15 nm in size) covered by PPy-C with compact nodes like appearance interlocked very well among each other. The newly developed Ag@PPy-C/m-TiO₂ ternary photocatalyst exhibited band gap energy in desired visible range of spectra. The photocatalytic efficiency for all created photocatalysts has been evaluated taking Imidacloprid (insecticide derivative) and methylene blue (MB) dye as target pollutants. The novel Ag@PPy-C/m-TiO₂ photocatalyst produced astonishing results with ultrafast removal of both Imidacloprid as well MB dye under visible light irradiation. The newly created ultrafast Ag@PPy-C/m-TiO₂ photocatalyst has removed 96.0% of the insecticide Imidacloprid in only 25 min with almost ? 2.65 times more efficient than bare m-TiO₂ towards the removal of insecticide derivative. The present report offers a highly encouraging and vastly talented Ag@PPy-C/m-TiO₂ ternary photocatalyst, enabling the ideal management of extremely lethal and notorious chemicals.     

The suppression of dark current for achieving high-performance Ga2O3 nanorod array ultraviolet photodetector

Gallium oxide (Ga₂O₃) is a promising candidate for next-generation solar-blind photodetectors (PDs) because of its large bandgap of 4.9 eV. Its single-crystal nanorod structure improves its photoelectric performance, which promotes carrier transformation and separation. However, Ga₂O₃ nanorods fabricated by the hydrothermal method have many oxygen vacancies, which largely enhance the dark current and reduce the on/off ratio of PDs, restricting application of such devices. Therefore, in this paper, dual strategies are applied to reduce the dark current of a metal–semiconductor–metal-structured Ga₂O₃ nanorod PD fabricated by the hydrothermal method. Through these dual strategies, which include annealing treatment and the application of a polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) coating, the dark current of the PD is reduced from 1.34 × 10^?7 to 2.04 × 10^?9 A at 1 V, resulting in the on/off ratio of the PD reaching as high as 3.24 × 10⁴. Besides, the responsivity and detectivity of the device reach 1.73 A/W and 2.53 × 10¹² Jones respectively, which represents better performance than those of other reported Ga₂O₃ nanorod array PDs. Results have shown that the new strategy adopted can greatly improve the performance of Ga₂O₃-based ultraviolet photodetectors.     

Effects of particle size distribution and sintering temperature on properties of alumina mold material prepared by stereolithography

Alumina mold materials prepared by stereolithography usually have considerable sintering shrinkage, and their properties related to casting have been rarely studied. In this study, alumina molds materials were prepared by stereolithography, and the effects of particle size distribution and sintering temperature on the properties of the materials were investigated. Results show that the viscosity of the slurries decreases as the fraction of fine powder increases, and the particle size distribution affects the curing behaviors slightly. Sintering shrinkage increases as the fraction of fine powder or the sintering temperature increases. Although lower sintering shrinkage can be achieved by sintering at 1350 °C or 1450 °C, the mold materials sintered at lower temperatures would continue to shrink under the service temperature of 1550 °C, and thus 1550 °C is determined as the optimal sintering temperature. As the fraction of fine powder increases, the creep resistance first increases and then decreases, and specimens prepared with 0.1 fraction of fine powder exhibit the best creep resistance with the droop distance of 4.44 ± 0.45 mm. Specimens prepared with 0.1 fraction of fine powder and sintered at 1550 °C exhibit linear shrinkage of 6.36% along the X/Y direction and 11.39% along the Z direction, and have a flexural strength of 78.15 ± 3.50 MPa and porosity of 30.12 ± 0.08%. The resulting material possesses relatively low sintering shrinkage, proper mechanical strength, porosity and high-temperature properties that meet the requirements for casting purposes.     

Effect of temperature on the structure and mechanical properties of SiC–TiB2 composite ceramics by solid-phase spark plasma sintering

SiC composite ceramics have good mechanical properties. In this study, the effect of temperature on the microstructure and mechanical properties of SiC–TiB₂ composite ceramics by solid-phase spark plasma sintering (SPS) was investigated. SiC–TiB₂ composite ceramics were prepared by SPS method with graphite powder as sintering additive and kept at 1700 °C, 1750 °C, 1800 °C and 50 MPa for 10min.The experimental results show that the proper TiB₂ addition can obviously increase the mechanical properties of SiC–TiB₂ composite ceramics. Higher sintering temperature results in the aggregation and growth of second-phase TiB₂ grains, which decreases the mechanical properties of SiC–TiB₂ composite ceramics. Good mechanical properties were obtained at 1750 °C, with a density of 97.3%, Vickers hardness of 26.68 GPa, bending strength of 380 MPa and fracture toughness of 5.16 MPa m^1/2.