The effects of SiCp addition on the z-value and mechanical properties of β-Sialon–SiCp refractories

The effects of SiCp addition on the z-value, microstructure and mechanical properties of ¢-Si6¹zAlzOzN8¹z­SiCp were investigated. The results showed that z-value of ¢-Sialon decreased from 2.66 to 1.20 with the increase of SiCp addition, while the apparent porosity of ¢-Sialon­SiCp composites increased. The bending strength and compressive strength decreased due to the increase of the apparent porosity and the weak cohesion resulted from the thermal expansion coefficient mismatch between SiCp and ¢-Sialon matrix. Moreover, a linear regression model used to identify the relationship between the content of SiC and z value of ¢-Sialon is fitted.