A NOVEL MANUFACTURING PROCESS ROUTE FOR FORMING HIGH-DENSITY CERAMIC ARMOR MATERIALS

SELF-PROPAGATING HIGH-TEMPERATURE COMBUSTION SYNTHESIS (SHS) IS A TECHNOLOGICALLY ATTRACTIVE PROCESS FOR FORMING SPECIAL ALLOY METALS, CERMETS, AND COMPOSITES. THE COMMERCIALLY VIABILITY OF THE PROCESS IS HAMPERED BY HIGH COSTS OF STARTING INGREDIENTS AND THE PRESENCE OF POROSITIES AND AGGLOMERATES IN THE SHS PRODUCTS. A NOVEL PROCESSING ROUTE, WHICH INVOLVES IN-SITU RAPID CONSOLIDATION DURING SHS REACTION TO FORM TIC AND TIB2 WILL BE INVESTIGATED. IT IS ANTICIPATED THAT THE USE OF THE HIGH SPEED CERAMIC CONSOLIDATION (CERACON) PROCESS DIRECTLY COUPLED WITH SHS WILL PROVIDE THE SHEAR/ HYDROSTATIC FIELD NECESSARY TO BREAK AGGLOMERATES AND ASSOCIATED INTERGRANULAR VOIDS TYPICALLY FORMING IN NORMAL SHS PRODUCTS. PROPER CONTROL OF CONSOLIDATION STRESS TENSOR WOULD THUS RESULT IN SIGNIFICANT HIGHER DENSITIES THAN THOSE ACHIEVABLE BY PURELY HYDROSTATIC PRESSING. THE PHASE I PROGRAM WILL DEMONSTRATE FEASIBILITY OF THE SHS-CERACON CONCEPT TO FORM DENSE TIC AND TIB2 MATERIALS. PHASE I DELIVERABLES WILL INCLUDE 4" DIAMETER X 1" THICK DISCS OF TIC AND TIB2 SAMPLES AND A TECHNICAL REPORT CONTAINING PROJECTED COST ANALYSIS FOR COMMERCIAL FABRICATION OF SHS-CERACON PROCESSED MATERIALS. PHASE II WILL INVOLVE DEVELOPMENT OF A PROTOTYPE UNIT FOR THE UPSCALED HIGH-SPEED FABRICATION OF HIGH-DENSITY TIC AND TIB2 MATERIALS. PHASE III WILL DEAL WITH MANUFACTURING OF SHS PRODUCTS INCLUDING ARMOR MATERIALS FOR ARMY AND OTHER COMPOSITE MATERIALS FOR COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS.