Asian Scientist (Jul. 15, 2013) – Researchers in Australia and China have teamed up to develop a new super-strong ceramic that resists wear at high temperatures.
The ceramic, developed for use in coal-fired power plants, may help to prevent delays and costly repairs in these plants. The material may also be used to protect expensive mining equipment.
“Most thermal power plants use circulating fluid bed boilers which require high-temperature wear-resistant linings,” said Dr Jingzhou Yang, a member of the research team.”
“In China, Australia and other countries, power supply relies mainly on coal firing. This requires high-temperature, wear-resistant linings and components. The alumina-based ceramic linings currently in use are fairly cheap but their resistance to wear, fracture and thermal shock isn’t good enough.”
“Because of this, power plants need to be stopped for long periods to repair worn equipment, which reduces the reliability of the power supply.”
To solve this problem, the researchers created a unique iron-sialon ceramic composite that was developed by combining ferro-silicon alloy, which is very common and cheap, and industrial alumina powders.
The process involved sintering – or heating industrial alumina and ferro-silicon alloy powders at a temperature below their melting point – at up to 1,700 degrees Celcius – in nitrogen for several hours.
The alumina then transforms into sialon, a ceramic that has maintains its high strength even at high temperatures.
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Source: University of Western Australia; Photo: Public Domain Photos/Flickr.
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