Synergic influence of MWCNTs and SiC nanoparticles on the microstructure and properties of Al2O3 ceramic hybrid nanocomposites.

Synergic role of 2 wt% MWCNTs and 5 wt% SiC nanoparticles on the structure and properties of the hybrid alumina nanocomposites fabricated through fast sintering route was studied. The hybrid nanocomposite demonstrated fourfold reduced grain size with substantial improvement in fracture toughness (110%) and hardness (30%) against bench-marked monolithic Al 2 O 3 . Fine-grained microstructure and the harder SiC nanoparticles led hybrid nanocomposite to superior hardness while better toughness was attributed to the synergic toughening mechanisms induced by the 0D SiC nanoparticles and 1D MWCNTs. The stability of MWCNTs and SiC nanoparticles and their interfaces with Al 2 O 3 matrix were appraised by combined electron microscopes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]