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A Historical Perspective on the Toughness of Ceramics

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Proceedings of the III Advanced Ceramics and Applications Conference

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Abstract

In this paper, we discuss fracture problems experienced by engineers early in the twentieth century, before fracture mechanics was developed and before we had a systematic way to characterize the fracture resistance of ceramic materials. Universal mechanical test machines and standard methods of establishing material performance under mechanical loads did not exist. Yet the needs for mechanical reliability were there, just as they are today. We review some of the problems encountered by engineers in designing with ceramic materials at the beginning of the twentieth century that are still problems today, but on materials with very different use. We shall show how the development of fracture mechanics and modern techniques of microstructural analysis enabled the solution of mechanical problems associated with the ceramics in modern applications. In the course of the paper we will trace the development of fracture mechanics from the early twentieth century to the present day and the replacement of performance tests with design criteria based on fracture mechanics analysis.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD, USA

    Sheldon M. Wiederhorn

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  1. Sheldon M. Wiederhorn
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Correspondence to Sheldon M. Wiederhorn .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Materials, Faculty of Engg, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom

    William E. Lee

  2. University of Stuttgart, Stuttgart, Germany

    Rainer Gadow

  3. Faculty of Electronic Engineering, University of Nis, Nis, Serbia

    Vojislav Mitic

  4. Institute of Technical Sciences, Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Belgrade, Serbia

    Nina Obradovic

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Wiederhorn, S.M. (2016). A Historical Perspective on the Toughness of Ceramics. In: Lee, W., Gadow, R., Mitic, V., Obradovic, N. (eds) Proceedings of the III Advanced Ceramics and Applications Conference. Atlantis Press, Paris. https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6239-157-4_1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6239-157-4_1

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  • Publisher Name: Atlantis Press, Paris

  • Print ISBN: 978-94-6239-156-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-6239-157-4

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