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Sintering Simulation of Periodic Macro Porous Alumina
Author(s) -
Besler Robert,
Rossetti da Silva Marcel,
Rosario Jefferson J.,
Dosta Maksym,
Heinrich Stefan,
Janssen Rolf
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of the american ceramic society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.9
H-Index - 196
eISSN - 1551-2916
pISSN - 0002-7820
DOI - 10.1111/jace.13684
Subject(s) - materials science , porosity , sintering , ceramic , void (composites) , composite material , particle size , particle (ecology) , diffusion , grain size , surface diffusion , mineralogy , chemical engineering , thermodynamics , geology , oceanography , physics , chemistry , organic chemistry , adsorption , engineering
Three‐dimensionally ordered macroporous (3 DOM ) ceramic materials are considered for a variety of applications. One of its many subclasses, inverse opals, is constituted by the ordered arrangement of the pores, resulting in the functionality of a photonic crystal and leading to strong reflection of incident electromagnetic radiation. Exposing these porous structures to high temperatures, however, can lead to sintering of the desired structure and loss of functionality. Therefore, discrete element method ( DEM ) simulations are performed on inverse opal structures with random homogenous distributed alumina particles forming the struts and nodes. Grain‐boundary diffusion as well as surface diffusion are modeled via respective parameters of a contact model applied in MUSEN ‐ DEM . Furthermore, the void to particle size ratio is varied to simulate fine and coarse grained 3 DOM ceramics. Results indicate that nodes densify at higher rates and to a larger extent when compared to struts. An increase in the void to particle size ratio results in similar trends but with lower densification rates. This behavior is observed regardless whether surface or grain‐boundary diffusion is considered as the dominant transport mechanism, with the latter giving higher densification rates. Variations in particle coordination due to the initial random packing favor local desintering, thereby causing the formation of defects/crack nuclei.