Superplasticity accommodation processes

The different accommodation processes controlling superplastic output... 

As can be inferred from the equations outlined above, none of the different models can adjust the creep parameters for all the different ceramics, especially in the case of YTZP,7 explaining why there is still controversy over the accommodation process controlling superplasticity. The same conclusions can be outlined for ceramic composites, although more experimental work should be done.20,31... 

For instance, dislocations have been shown to play a key role in the accommodation process in YTZP, justifying the threshold stress in YTZP, in contrast with the hypothesis that this threshold stress is due to the electric field created by impurity segregation. However, dislocations are not systematically observed in YTZP furthermore it was shown that in yttria-stabilized tetragonal zirconia single crystals, the stress necessary to activate dislocations at 1400°C was over 400 MPa, one order of magnitude higher than the stresses used during superplastic deformation of YTZP at the same temperature. It will be necessary to conduct a systematic study of the microstructure of the monolithic ceramics such as YTZP before and after deformation and to correlate their relationship with the superplastic features. 

In this chapter, the macroscopic and microscopic aspects of superplasticity, the accommodation processes, the applications and the future prospects of ceramic superplasticity vdll be addressed. 

Before discussing the possible accommodation processes controlling superplasticity, it is important first to discuss how the nature of the grain boundaries can influence superplastic behavior. 

The accommodation processes are responsible for the rate-control of superplasticity, and no single mechanism exists to accommodate GBS, even with regards to a particular ceramic system. As noted above, several factors can affect the different mechanisms, among which should be included the nature of the impurities present in the grain boundaries, the secondary phases, and the testing conditions. The different mechanisms for accommodation will be analyzed in the following sections. 

When accommodated by some of the mechanisms involving dislocation movement or the diffusion of point defects, GBS forms the basis of the structural superplastic behavior of these materials (see Section 15.2). By taking advantage of the processes involved in superplasticity, it is possible to join ceramics super-plastically. For example, when two pieces of the same ceramics in contact are deformed within a superplastic regime (i.e., as soon as GBS is activated), the grains of one part interpenetrate those of the other part. This produces a rapid and perfect junction of the two, in such a way that a shorter time and a lower temperature can be used than are commonly required in other conventional process for ceramics joining [90]. 

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