Strength comparison for fully dense zirconium diboride ceramics tested by different methods

The strength of zirconium diboride ceramics was tested by three different methods, 3‐point flexure, 4‐point flexure, and compression. Nearly full‐density ceramics were obtained by hot pressing commercial ZrB2 powder with the addition of .5 wt.% carbon as a sintering aid. The thermal properties and hardness were studied for ZrB2 milled with ZrB2 and WC media. Based on phase purity and higher thermal conductivity, ZrB2 ceramics prepared from powders milled with ZrB2 media were selected for mechanical property studies. The strength in 3‐point flexure was 546 ± 55 MPa. The flexure strength was 476 ± 41 MPa in 4‐point bending, which was ∼20% higher than the previously reported value of 398 MPa for ZrB2 with similar grain sizes due to higher relative density and lower impurity contents. Compression testing was performed at room temperature, and the strength was 1110 ± 358 MPa. Finally, the fracture toughness of pure ZrB2 ceramics was determined by the chevron‐notched beam method to be 3.6 ± .7 MPa m1/2. The strength and fracture toughness values are higher than those previously published for ZrB2 ceramics and can be attributed to higher density and lower grain size. The strength‐limiting flaw sizes were comparable to the grain size, suggesting that porosity and impurity phases did not play a significant role in the strength of these ceramics.