Development of an interfacial test system for the determination of interfacial properties in fiber reinforced ceramic composite

In fiber reinforced ceramic composites, a critical need exists for the accurate measurement of interfacial properties such as the debond strength, sliding shear stress, and residual stress. The characterization of these properties frequently relies on the use of indentation techniques and their instrumentation which may suffer from one or more of the following: insufficient load capabilities, lack of automation, the indentor used produces plastic deformation or worse fiber fracture, and/or inability to conduct tests on fibers whose diameter may be as small as 10-12 μm. The development of an interfacial test system at ORNL represents a concerted effort at addressing these limitations. A description of the hardware and a brief test methodology is presented in addition to a discussion of two test cases.