Bioinspired PcBN/hBN fibrous monolithic ceramic: High-temperature crack resistance responses and self-lubricating performances

The high strength and toughness of natural materials are mainly determined by a combination of mechanisms operating at different length scales, which can be used as a strategy to reduce the intrinsic brittleness of ceramics. Inspired by the architectures of bamboo, the polycrystalline cubic boron nitride/hexagonal boron nitride (PcBN/hBN) fibrous monolithic ceramics with a long fiber arrangement structure was constructed with PcBN fiber cells and hBN cell boundaries, and its crack resistance responses and tribological performances were investigated. The composite ceramic failed in a non-brittle manner with the rising resistance curve (R-curve) behavior, which was attributed to multiscale crack effects in the hierarchical architecture. The maximum crack growth toughness was extremely high (approximately 21 MPa center dot m(1/2)), corresponding to a 270% increase over the crack initiation toughness. Excellent fracture resistance could be retained even above 1000 degrees C. Moreover, the composite ceramic exhibited low and stable friction coefficients (approximately 0.33) when paired with a Si3N4 pin at high temperature (1000 degrees C), owing to the lubrication function of hBN cell boundaries with weak van der Waals forces and a small amount of liquid B2O3 produced. As a result, a synergistic improvement of mechanical and tribological properties at high temperature (1000 degrees C) was realized by combining bionic structure and tribological design. It provides important theoretical and technical support for expanding the application of self-lubricating composite ceramics in harsh environments.