Study on the Relationships between Edge Distance and the Failure Process of Edge Chipping for Engineering Ceramics

Edge distance is the main factor inducing edge chipping. An edge chipping experiment is designed to study the relationships between edge distance and the edge chipping from the aspect of fracture process, the load-displacement curves and AE signals are documented. The results show that the fracture processes of edge chipping at different edge distances are similar and could be divided into four stages, AE signals could reflect the fracture process features of edge chipping. As edge distance increases, the displacements of indenter and critical loads would increase correspondingly, while the peak values of count and duration would decrease. The critical edge distance for Al2O3 is about 0.75mm; the displacements of indenter would keep invariable, while the peak values of count and duration would get to the minimum.