Thermal shock behavior of fiber-reinforced composites

The thermal shock behavior of three types of continuous fiber-reinforced ceramic composites (Nextel{trademark} or Nicalon{trademark} fiber-reinforced chemical vapor infiltrated or polymer-derived SiC matrix composites) was studied using the water quench technique. The thermal shock induced damage was characterized by both destructive and nondestructive techniques. As compared with monolithic ceramics, the continuous fiber-reinforced ceramic composites were capable of preventing catastrophic failure caused by thermal shock and were able to retain a significant portion of their original strength at {Delta}{Tau} = 1000{degrees}C. The nondestructive techniques involved measuring the thermal diffusivity by the flash technique and determining the Young`s modulus by the dynamic resonance method. It has been demonstrated that these nondestructive techniques can detect damage induced by thermal shock and are more sensitive in detecting damage in the early stage than the conventional destructive technique of measuring the retained strength.