Evaluation of Thermal Shock Fracture Resistance of Ceramics by Quenching-Small Punch (SP) Test

A simple test method using small sized specimens is often required for the effective development of ceramic materials. In the present work, the Modified Small Punch (MSP) test was employed for evaluating the thermal shock resistance of Y2O3-ZrO2 and SiC ceramics.The change in strength after quenching from various temperatures was evaluated accurately by the MSP test. The load vs. deflection curves obtained by the MSP test provided more detailed information about the thermal shock by quenching. It has been found that the measured values of the critical temperature difference which indicates the thermal shock resistance of the ceramics are in good agreement with the theoretically calculated values for the materials investigated in the present work. The results show that the combination of water quenching and MSP test is effective for the evaluation of thermal shock resistance of ceramics.