Modelling the effect of temperature and damage on the fracture strength of ultra-high temperature ceramics

A fracture strength theoretical model for ultra-high temperature ceramics is proposed in which both high temperature dependency and damage dependency are considered. The model accounts for the effects of temperature, crack size and damage accumulation on fracture strength. Predictions are presented for TiC and compared with experimental results obtained at different temperatures. The dependency of fracture strength on several parameters is discussed. The sensitivity of fracture strength to crack size declines rapidly as temperature rises, while its sensitivity to Young's modulus increases rapidly as temperature rises.