Effect of the nature of the intergranular phase on sliding-wear resistance of liquid-phase-sintered α-SiC

The effect of the nature of the intergranular phase on sliding-wear resistance of equiaxed-grained, liquid-phase-sintered (LPS) alpha-SiC ceramics was studied. The nature of the intergranular phase in LPS alpha-SiC ceramics was modified using Ar or N-2 sintering atmospheres, while maintaining the same grain size and morphology. Sintering under N-2 leads to the incorporation of nitrogen in the intergranular phase, and attendant solid-solution hardening of that phase. The solid-solution hardened intergranular phase results in LPS SiC ceramics with improved sliding-wear resistance. (c) 2007 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.