ASTM C1366-04(2009)

This test method may be used for material development, material comparison, quality assurance, characterization, reliability assessment, and design data generation.

High strength, monolithic advanced ceramic materials are generally characterized by small grain sizes (< 50 μm) and bulk densities near the theoretical density. These materials are candidates for load-bearing structural applications requiring high degrees of wear and corrosion resistance and elevated-temperature strength. Although flexural test methods are commonly used to evaluate strength of advanced ceramics, the non uniform stress distribution of the flexure specimen limits the volume of material subjected to the maximum applied stress at fracture. Uniaxially-loaded tensile strength tests provide information on strength-limiting flaws from a greater volume of uniformly stressed material.

Because of the probabilistic strength distributions of brittle materials such as advanced ceramics, a sufficient number of test specimens at each testing condition is required for statistical analysis and eventual design with guidelines for sufficient numbers provided in this test method. Size-scaling effects as discussed in practice C 1239 will affect the strength values. Therefore, strengths obtained using different recommended tensile test specimen geometries with different volumes or surface areas of material in the gage sections will be different due to these size differences. Resulting strength values can, in principle, be scaled to an effective volume or effective surface area of unity as discussed in Practice C 1239.

Tensile tests provide information on the strength and deformation of materials under uniaxial stresses. Uniform stress states are required to effectively evaluate any non-linear stress-strain behavior which may develop as the result of testing mode, testing rate, processing or alloying effects, environmental influences, or elevated temperatures. These effects may be consequences of stress corrosion or sub critical (slow) crack growth which can be minimized by testing at appropriately rapid rates as outlined in this test method.

The results of tensile tests of specimens fabricated to standardized dimensions from a particular material or selected portions of a part, or both, may not totally represent the strength and deformation properties of the entire, full-size end product or its in-service behavior in different environments.

For quality control purposes, results derived from standardized tensile test specimens can be considered to be indicative of the response of the material from which they were taken for particular primary processing conditions and post-processing heat treatments.

The tensile strength of a ceramic material is dependent on both its inherent resistance to fracture and the presence of flaws. Analysis of fracture surfaces and fractography as described in Practice C 1322 and MIL-HDBK-790, though beyond the scope of this test method, are recommended for all purposes, especially for design data.

1.1 This test method covers the determination of tensile strength under uniaxial loading of monolithic advanced ceramics at elevated temperatures. This test method addresses, but is not restricted to, various suggested test specimen geometries as listed in the appendix. In addition, test specimen fabrication methods, testing modes (force, displacement, or strain control), testing rates (force rate, stress rate, displacement rate, or strain rate), allowable bending, and data collection and reporting procedures are addressed. Tensile strength as used in this test method refers to the tensile strength obtained under uniaxial loading.

1.2 This test method applies primarily to advanced ceramics which macroscopically exhibit isotropic, homogeneous, continuous behavior. While this test method applies primarily to monolithic advanced ceramics, certain whisker, or particle-reinforced composite ceramics as well as certain discontinuous fiber-reinforced composite ceramics may also meet these macroscopic behavior assumptions. Generally, continuous fiber ceramic composites (CFCCs) do not macroscopically exhibit isotropic, homogeneous, continuous behavior and application of this test method to these materials is not recommended.

1.3 The values stated in SI units are to be regarded as the standard and are in accordance with Practice E 380.

1.4 This standard does not purport to address all of the safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appropriate safety and health practices and determine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use. Refer to Section 7 for specific precautions.