• Journal of the Korean Ceramic Society
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• v.44 no.7
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• pp.343-348
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• 2007

Alumina/silver nanocomposites were fabricated using a soaking method through a sol-gel route to construct an intra-type nanostructure. The pulse electric-current sintering (PECS) technique was used to sinter the nanocomposites. Several specimens were annealed after sintering. The microstructure, mechanical properties, critical frontal process zone (FPZ) size, and thermo-mechanical properties of the nanocomposites were estimated. The relative densities of the specimens sintered at 1350 and $1450^{\circ}C$ were 95% and 99%, respectively. The maximum value of the three-point bending strength was found to be 780 MPa for the $2{\times}2{\times}10 mm$ specimen sintered at $1350^{\circ}C$. The fracture toughness of the specimen sintered at $1350^{\circ}C$ was measured to be $3.60 MPa{\cdot}m^{1/2}$ using the single-edge V-notched beam (SEVNB) technique. The fracture mode of the nanocomposites was transgranular, in contrast to the intergranular mode of monolithic alumina. The fracture morphology suggested that dislocations were generated around the silver nanoparticles dispersed within the alumina matrix. The specimens sintered at $1350^{\circ}C$ were annealed at $800^{\circ}C$ for 5 min, following which the maximum fracture strength became 810 MPa and the fracture toughness improved to $4.21 MPam^{1/2}$. The critical FPZ size was the largest for the specimen annealed at $800^{\circ}C$ for 5 min. Thermal conductivity of the alumina/silver nanocomposites sintered at $1350^{\circ}C$ was 38 W/mK at room temperature, which was higher than the value obtained with the law of mixture.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.14 no.9
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• pp.649-654
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• 2004

In this paper, the fracture toughness and mechanisms of failure in a random SiC-whisker/$Al_{2}O_3$ ceramic composite were investigated using in situ observations during mode I(opening) loading. $SiC_{w}/Al_{2}O_3$ composite was obtained by hot press sintering of $Al_{2}O_3$ powder and SiC whisker as the matrix and reinforcement, respectively. The whisker and powder were mixed using a turbo mill. The composite was produced at SiC whisker volume fraction of $0.3\%$. Compared with monolithic $Al_{2}O_3$, fracture toughness enhancement was observed in $SiC_{w}/Al_{2}O_3$ composite. This improved fracture toughness was attributed to SiC whisker bridging and crack deflection. $SiC_{w}/Al_{2}O_3$ composite exhibited typically brittle fracture behavior, but a fracture process zone was observed in this composite. This means that the load versus load-line displacement curve of $SiC_{w}/Al_{2}O_3$ composite from a fracture test may involve a small non-linear region near the peak load.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.45 no.6
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• pp.811-820
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• 2013

SiC has been under investigation as a potential cladding for LWR fuel, due to its high melting point and drastically reduced chemical reactivity with liquid water, and steam at high temperatures. As SiC is a brittle material its behavior during the reflood phase of a Loss of Coolant Accident (LOCA) is another important aspect of SiC that must be examined as part of the feasibility assessment for its application to LWR fuel rods. In this study, an experimental assessment of thermal shock performance of a monolithic alpha phase SiC tube was conducted by quenching the material from high temperature (up to $1200^{\circ}C$) into room temperature water. Post-quenching assessment was carried out by a Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) image analysis to characterize fractures in the material. This paper assesses the effects of pre-existing pores on SiC cladding brittle fracture and crack development/propagation during the reflood phase. Proper extension of these guidelines to an SiC/SiC ceramic matrix composite (CMC) cladding design is discussed.

• Proceedings of the KSME Conference
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• 2008.11a
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• pp.234-238
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• 2008

The efficiency of fiber reinforced CMC(ceramic matrix composite) on the SiC materials have been investigated, in conjunction with the fabrication process by liquid phase sintering and the characterization. LPS-$SiC_f$/SiC composites was studied with the detailed analysis such as the microstructure, sintered density, flexural strength and fracture behavior. The applicability of carbon interfacial layer has been also investigated in the LPS process. Submicron SiC powder with the constant total amount and composition ratio of $Al_2O_3,\;Y_2O_3$ as sintering additives was used in order to promote the performance of the SiC matrix material. LPS-$SiC_f$/SiC composites were fabricated with hot press under the sintering temperature and applied pressure of $1820^{\circ}C$ and 20MPa for 1hr. The typical property of monolithic LPS-SiC materials was compared with LPS-$SiC_f$/SiC composites.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.93-98
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• 2020

Effective control of the heat generated from electronics and semiconductor devices requires a high thermal conductivity and a low thermal expansion coefficient appropriate for devices or modules. A method of reducing the thermal expansion coefficient of Cu has been suggested wherein a ceramic filler having a low thermal expansion coefficient is applied to Cu, which has high thermal conductivity. In this study, using pressureless sintering rather than costly pressure sintering, a polymer solution synthesis method was used to make nano-sized Cu powder for application to Cu matrix with an AlN filler. Due to the low sinterability, the sintered Cu prepared from commercial Cu powder included large pores inside the sintered bodies. A sintered Cu body with Zn, as a liquid phase sintering agent, was prepared by the polymer solution synthesis method for exclusion of pores, which affect thermal conductivity and thermal expansion. The pressureless sintered Cu bodies including Zn showed higher thermal conductivity (180 W/m·K) and lower thermal expansion coefficient (15.8×10^-6/℃) than did the monolithic synthesized Cu sintered body.

• Journal of Electrical Engineering and information Science
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• v.2 no.6
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• pp.202-207
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• 1997

Design and fabrication issues for an L-band GaAs Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuit(MMIC) Voltage Controlled Oscillator(VCO) as a component of Personal Communications Systems(PCS) Radio Frequency(RF) transceiver are discussed. An ion-implanted GaAs MESFET tailored toward low current and low noise with 0.5mm gate length and 300mm gate width has been used as an active device, while an FET with the drain shorted to the source has been used as the voltage variable capacitor. The principal design was based on a self-biased FET with capacitive feedback. A tuning range of 140MHz and 58MHz has been obtained by 3V change for a 600mm and a 300mm devices, respectively. The oscillator output power was 6.5dBm wth 14mA DC current supply at 3.6V. The phase noise without any buffer or PLL was 93dB/1Hz at 100KHz offset. Harmonic balance analysis was used for the non-linear simulation after a linear simulation. All layout induced parasitics were incorporated into the simulation with EEFET2 non-linear FET model. The fabricated circuits were measured using a coplanar-type probe for bare chips and test jigs with ceramic packages.

• Journal of Powder Materials
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.233-238
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• 2021

Iron-based amorphous powder attracts increasing attention because of its excellent soft magnetic properties and low iron loss at high frequencies. The development of an insulating layer on the surface of the amorphous soft magnetic powder is important for minimizing the eddy current loss and enhancing the energy efficiency of high-frequency devices by further increasing the electrical resistivity of the cores. In this study, a hybrid insulating coating layer is investigated to compensate for the limitations of monolithic organic or inorganic coating layers. Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles are added to the flexible silicon-based epoxy layer to prevent magnetic dilution; in addition TiO₂ nanoparticles are added to enhance the mechanical durability of the coating layer. In the hybrid coating layer with optimal composition, the decrease in magnetic permeability and saturation magnetization is suppressed.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.54 no.3
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• pp.991-996
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• 2022

Microstructures of monolithic high purity SiC and SiC with sintering additives after neutron irradiation to a fluence of 2.0-2.5 × 10²⁴ n/m² (E > 0.1 MeV) at 333-363 K and after post-irradiation annealing up to 1673 K were observed using a transmission electron microscopy. Results showed that no black spot defects or dislocation loops in SiC grains were found after the neutron irradiation for all of the specimens owing to the moderate fluence at low irradiation temperature. Thus, it is confirmed that these specimens were swelled mostly by the formation of point defects. Black spots and small dislocation loops were discovered only after the annealing process in PureBeta-SiC and CVD-SiC, where the swelling almost diminished. Anomalous-shaped YAG grains were found in SiC ceramics containing sintering additives. These grains contained dense black spots defects and might lose crystallinity after the neutron irradiation, while these defects may annihilate by recrystallization during annealing up to 1673 K. Amorphous grain boundary phase was also presented in this ceramic, and a large part of it was crystallized through post-irradiation annealing and could affect their recovery behavior.

• Journal of Ocean Engineering and Technology
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• v.20 no.5 s.72
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• pp.77-81
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• 2006

In this study, monolithic liquid phase sintered SiC (LPS-SiC) was made by the hot pressing method with nano-SiC powder, whose particle size is 30 nm and less on the average. Alumina ($Al_{2}O_{3}$), yttria ($Y_{2}O_{3}$), and silica ($S_{i}O_{2}$) were used for sintering additives. To investigate the effects of $S_{i}O_{2}$, the $Al_{2}O_{3}/Y_{2}O_{3}$ composition was fixed and the ratio of $S_{i}O_{2}$ was changed, with seven different ratios tested. And to investigate the effects of the sintering temperature, the sintering temperature was changed, with $1760^{\circ}C,\;1780_{\circ}C$, and $1800_{\circ}C$ being used with a $S_{i}O_{2}$ ratio of 3 wt%. The materials were sintered for 1 hour at $1760^{\circ}C,\;1780^{\circ}C$ and $1800^{\circ}C$ under a pressure of 20 MPa. The effects on sintering from the sintering system used, as well as from the composition of the sintering additives, were investigated by density measurements. Mechanical properties, such as flexural strength, were investigated to ensure the optimum conditions for a matrix of SiCf/SiC composites. Sintered densityand the flexural strength of fabricated LPS-SiC increased with an increase in sintering temperature. Particularly, the relative density of a sintered body at $1800^{\circ}C$ with a non-content of $S_{i}O_{2}$, a specimen of AYSO-1800, was 95%. Also, flexural strength was about 750MPa.

• Journal of Mechanical Science and Technology
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• v.20 no.7
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• pp.1002-1011
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• 2006

In this study, we describe the conventional hot pressing (CHP) of layered $Al-B_4C$ composites and their characterization. The matrix alloy Al-5 wt.%Cu was prepared from elemental powder mixtures. The metal and B4C powders were mixed to produce either $Al-Cu-10vol.%B_4C$ or $Al-Cu-30vol.%B_4C$ combinations. Then, these powder mixtures were stacked as layers in the hot pressing die to form a two-layered composite. Hot pressing was carried out under nitrogen atmosphere to produce $30\times40\times5mm$ specimens. Microstructural features and age hardening characteristics of composites were determined by specimens cut longitudinally. The flexural strength of both layered composites and their monolithic counterparts were investigated via three point bending tests. In the case of layered specimens of both $10vol.%B_4C$ and $30vol.%B_4C$ containing layers were loaded for three-point test. The results show that a homogeneous distribution of $B_4C$ particles in the matrix alloy which is free of pores, can be obtained by CHP method. The ageing behavior of the composites was found to be influenced by the reinforced materials, i.e. higher hardness values were reached in 8 hrs for the composites than that for the matrix alloy. Flexural strength test showed that two-layered composites exhibited improved damage tolerance depending on layer arrangement. Microstructural investigation of the fracture surfaces of the bending specimens was performed by means of scanning electron microscope (SEM). While layer with lower reinforcement content exhibited large plastic deformation under loading, the other with higher reinforcement content exhibited less plastic deformation.