Development of B6O-based materials for wear applications

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B6O materials are a promising candidate for the development of new superhard and wear-resistant materials. In prior works the applicants have discovered that sintering additives offer the possibility for a reproducible liquid phase-assisted densification of B6O by FAST/SPS (Spark Plasma Sintering) or HIP (hot-isostatic pressing). For the reproducible densification and the tailoring of the resulting material properties, it is essential to understand the processes taking place during densification and to develop microstructure-properties relationships for these materials. In the proposed project, B6O materials with different additive compositions and under the use of different sintering conditions will be prepared and characterized in respect to their microstructure and the resulting mechanical properties.The main scope of this study is a correlation of the developed microstructure (i.e. planar defects in B6O grains which are supposed to be responsible for the occurrence of abnormal grain growth in B6O materials) with the measured mechanical properties, in particular the hardness and the fracture toughness which are known to be major properties for controlling the wear resistance of materials. It is expected that a fundamental understanding of the currently unsolved questions regarding the occurring toughening mechanisms and the observed decrease of the hardness of polycrystalline B6O materials in comparison to single crystal data will result in tools which allow a tailoring of the microstructure and thus B6O materials with adjustable properties.