Experimental Fracture Measurements of Functionally Graded Materials

The primary objective of this research was to extend established fracture toughness testing methods to a new class of engineering materials known as functionally graded materials (FGMs). Secondary goals were to compare experimental results to those predicted by finite element models and to provide fracture test results as feedback toward optimizing processing parameters for the in-house synthesis of a MoSi2/SiC FGM. Preliminary experiments were performed on commercially pure (CP) Ti and uniform axial tensile tests resulted in mechanical property data including yield strength, 268 MPa, ultimate tensile strength, 470 MPa and Young's modulus, 110 GPa. Results from 3-point bending fracture experiments on CP Ti demonstrated rising R-curve behavior and experimentally determined JQ fracture toughness values ranged between 153 N/mm and 254 N/mm. Similar experimental protocols were used for fracture experiments on a 7- layered Ti/TiB FGM material obtained from Cercom in Vista, California. A novel technique for pre-cracking in reverse 4-point bending was developed for this ductile/brittle FGM material. Fracture test results exhibited rising R-curve behavior and estimated JQ fracture toughness values ranged from 0.49 N/mm to 2.63 N/mm. A 5- layered MoSi2/SiC FGM was synthesized using spark plasma sintering (SPS). Samples of this material were fracture tested and the results again exhibited a rising R-curve with KIC fracture toughness values ranging from 2.7 MPa-m1/2 to 6.0 MPa-m1/2. Finite Element Models predicted rising R-curve behavior for both of the FGM materials tested. Model results were in close agreement for the brittle MoSi2/SiC FGM. For the relatively more ductile Ti/TiB material, results were in close agreement at short crack lengths but diverged at longer crack lengths because the models accounted for fracture toughening mechanisms at the crack tip but not those acting in the crack wake.