Pesting intermediate temperatures

Non-oxide CMCs are susceptible to degradation by oxidation embrittlement that operates at intermediate temperatures, between 500 and 900°C. This is referred to as pest phenomenon by a few authors. The matrix cracks created upon loading become pathways for the ingress of oxygen into the material. The pyrocarbon interphase is consumed (oxygen reacts to form gaseous products) and the SiC fibers are degraded by oxidation,... 

It should be noted that the term pesting is sometimes erroneously used to describe other clearly different oxidation phenomena. It is also often used more broadly, with respect to intermediate-temperature degradation in an oxidizing environment, than is justified by the present definition. For example, the end result of rapid degradation of an intermetallic alloy by internal or intergranular oxidation can seem to resemble that of pesting, but is certainly not the same as the... 

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