High-temperature tensile deformation behavior of aluminum oxide with and without an applied electric field

Ceramics are usually considered to be brittle, but under certain conditions some ceramics exhibit a large degree of ductility. They are fine-grained and exhibit superplastic behavior when deformed at high temperatures and low stresses. Whereas superplasticity gives enhanced ductility to metals, it may be the only method for imparting large plasticity to ceramics. Electric fields have been shown to increase ductility, reduce flow stress and reduce cavitation in the superplastic forming of 7475 Al and yttria-stabilized zirconia. Thus, the concurrent application of an electric field may give improved superplastic properties and increased plasticity to a marginally ductile ceramic such as aluminum oxide (α-alumina).; Fine-grained alumina tensile specimens, formed by dry pressing and sintering a spray-dried powder, were tested in tension at high temperature with and without an electric field of 300 V/cm. Constant strain rate, strain rate cycling and stress relaxation tests were performed. The effects of an electric field on the ductility, flow stress, cavitation and parameters of the Weertman-Dorn deformation equation were measured. Without an electric field, the following deformation parameters were found: the stress exponent n = 2.2, the grain size exponent p = 1.9, the activation energy Q = 490 kJ/mol and the threshold stress σ_o ≈ 0 MPa, indicating structural superplasticity where grain boundary sliding is the predominant deformation mode and was likely accommodated by the motion of grain boundary dislocations. An electric field of 300 V/cm gave a Joule heating temperature increase of ∼30°C and caused the alumina to swell 5–25% (increasing with time), even while under no applied stress, thereby reducing its ductility and flow stress. After correcting for Joule heating and swelling there was still a significant flow stress reduction produced by the field and the following deformation parameters were found: n = 2.2, p = 1.9, Q = 950 kJ/mol and σ_o ≈ 0 MPa. Therefore, grain boundary sliding was likely accommodated by a different diffusion mechanism, namely subboundary or grain boundary diffusion. It is concluded that electro-transport, where there is mass transport of the most mobile ionic species (Al3+), enhanced the deformation rate and induced swelling through the formation of oxygen gas at the Al-depleted grain boundaries. The electric field changed the microstructural and mechanical properties of aluminum oxide, although not in a fashion which enhanced its overall deformation behavior.