Abstract:
Prepare boron carbide-aluminum structural composites by infiltrating molten aluminum or aluminum alloy into a porous preform that is either unbaked or baked at a temperature of up to 1800.degree. C. to form a densified cermet and then heat treat the cermet in air or an oxygen-containing atmosphere to form a dense outer surface layer of aluminum oxide. The resulting structural cermets can withstand prolonged exposure to temperatures above the melting point of aluminum without suffering undue degradation of physical properties such as flexure strength.
Abstract:
A method to at least partially impregnate a porous ceramic body with a metal comprising positioning a sacrificial porous ceramic transport means in physical contact with the metal and between the porous ceramic body to be impregnated and the metal; interposing a sufficient amount of a ceramic powder in contacting relationship between the ceramic body and the transport means to enable the metal to flow from the ceramic transport means to the ceramic body and insufficient to permit metal bonding between the transport means and the ceramic body, at least one constituent of the powder being wettable by, and chemically reactive with the metal; and maintaining at least the ceramic body and metal transport means at a temperature, and for a time, sufficient for at least a portion of the metal to flow through the transport means and into the ceramic body to impregnate the ceramic body a predetermined amount to form a metal impregnated ceramic body of near net shape.
Abstract:
Ceramic metal compositions are described that include a ceramic phase content of at least 60 percent by volume of said composition and a copper metal phase permeating the ceramic phase. The resulting composition is substantially fully densified, having a connected or isolated ceramic grain structure, preferably of fine B.sub.4 C grains of less than 3 micrometers. Flexure strength and fracture toughness for 80 volume percent B.sub.4 C-20 volume percent Cu cermets are 6.62 MPa.multidot.m1/2 and 725 MPa, respectively. The process of the invention includes as a key element, contacting a porous article of ceramic phase with copper metal followed by heating to above melting and subjecting said article to pressure of at least 200 MPa, such that the porous body is filled with metal and the composition is substantially fully densified.
Abstract:
Use a material which has a coefficient of thermal expansion greater than silicon nitride and does not react with silicon nitride under hot pressing conditions either to fabricate or to coat hot-pressing die plates suitable for densification of silicon nitride. The die plates separate cleanly from the silicon nitride thereby allowing preparation of near-net shapes having complex geometries, but without post densification grinding or machining.
Abstract:
Hard, tough, lightweight boron-carbide-reactive metal composites, particularly boron-carbide-aluminum composites, are produced. These composites have compositions with a plurality of phases. A method is provided, including the steps of wetting and reacting the starting materials, by which the microstructures in the resulting composites can be controllably selected. Starting compositions, reaction temperatures, reaction times, and reaction atmospheres are parameters for controlling the process and resulting compositions. The ceramic phases are homogeneously distributed in the metal phases and adhesive forces at ceramic-metal interfaces are maximized. An initial consolidation step is used to achieve fully dense composites. Microstructures of boron-carbide-aluminum cermets have been produced with modulus of rupture exceeding 110 ksi and fracture toughness exceeding 12 ksi.sqroot.in. These composites and methods can be used to form a variety of structural elements.
Abstract:
The present invention relates to modified geopolymer compositions, geopolymer-coated organic polymer substrates, and methods of manufacturing and articles comprising same.
Abstract:
A porous discriminating layer is formed on a ceramic support having at least one porous wall by (a) establishing a flow of a gas stream containing agglomerates of particles and (b) calcining said deposited layer to form the discriminating layer. At least a portion of the particles are of a sinter-resistant material or a sinter-resistant material precursor. The particles have a size from 0.01 to 5 microns and the agglomerates have a size of from 10 to 200 microns. This method is an inexpensive and effective route to forming a discriminating layer onto the porous wall.
Abstract:
An improved aluminum-boron carbide (ABC) composite has been discovered that is comprised of a continuous network of AlB24C4 and boron carbide grains having therein other isolated aluminum-boron carbide reactive phases and at most 2% by volume of isolated metal. The improved ABC composite may be formed by forming boron carbide particulates into a porous body that has a porosity of at most about 35%, where the boron particulates have been heat treated to a temperature of 1200° C. to 1800° C., infiltrating the porous body with aluminum or aluminum alloy until an infiltrated aluminum-boron carbide body is formed that has at most about 1% porosity, heat treating the infiltrated body for at least 25 hours at 1000° C. to 1100° C. to form an aluminum boron carbide composite having a continuous network of AlB24C4 and boron carbide, and subsequently heat-treating to 700° C. to 900° C. to form the improved aluminum boron carbide composite.
Abstract:
A method of forming a porous mullite composition of acicular mullite grains having improved properties is described, where the mullite is formed at some time in the presence of a fluorine containing gas. For example, it has been discovered that improved properties may result from heating the mullite to a high temperature in an atmosphere selected from the group consisting of water vapor, oxygen, an inert gas or mixtures thereof or forming the mullite composition from precursors having an Al/Si ratio of at most 2.95.
Abstract:
A concrete article comprised of concrete having therein a reinforcing fiber, where at least about 50 percent of the reinforcing fibers are frayed only at an end or ends of the reinforcing fibers, may be made by mixing concrete, water and a reinforcing fiber for a sufficient time to fray the ends of at least 50 percent of the fibers and curing the mixture to form the concrete article. The fiber may be a reinforcing fiber comprised of at least two filaments bonded together and the filaments being comprised of a polymeric core and a polymeric sheath comprised of a fusing-fraying polymer, such that the reinforcing fiber, when mixed with inorganic particulates, frays predominately only at an end or ends of the fiber.