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Fracture of alumina: an experimental and numerical study

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Abstract

A numerical analysis of the fracture behaviour of alumina has been performed based on experimental crack growth studies. Single-edge notch bend and short-double cantilever beam specimens of diverse grain size alumina were tested under quasi-static growth conditions. Constitutive equations for the alumina were obtained from experimental results and used to carry out finite element analyses. The agreement between numerical and experimental results is very promising, e.g. the influence of grain size on fracture behaviour can be predicted accurately. The underlying toughening mechanisms are discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Ciencia de Materiales, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, ETS Ingenieros de Caminos, Ciudad Universitaria, 28040, Madrid, Spain

    J. Llorca

  2. Institut für Reaktorwerkstoffe, Forschunszentrum Jülich, Postfach 1913, D-5170, Jülich, Germany

    R. W. Steinbrech

Authors
  1. J. Llorca
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  2. R. W. Steinbrech
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Llorca, J., Steinbrech, R.W. Fracture of alumina: an experimental and numerical study. J Mater Sci 26, 6383–6390 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02387818

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02387818

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