Solid particle erosion behaviour of high purity alumina ceramics

The solid particle erosion behaviour of a high purity, cold isostatically pressed ceramics, CIP-Al2O3, is studied in this paper. The influence of particle properties, such as hardness and shape, on erosion is examined, as well as the effect of varying the impingement angle of the erodent stream on the weight loss of alumina ceramics samples. Therefore, the erosive wear behaviour was studied at five different impact angles (30°, 45°, 60°, 75° and 90°), using SiC and SiO2 particles as erodents. The material loss during solid particle erosion is measured by changes in surface roughness, surface morphology and mass loss. The surface roughness and topography of the eroded Al2O3 ceramics were recorded using a profilometer. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to examine the features of eroded surfaces and to ascertain erosion mechanisms of the tested alumina samples. The results indicate that hard, angular SiC particles cause more damage than softer, more rounded SiO2 particles. It was found that maximum erosion by both types of particles occurs at an impact angle of 90°.