Approximation of mechanical properties of sintered materials with discrete element method

Abstract

Sintering process is a key step in ceramic processing, which has strong influence on quality of final product. The final shape, microstructure and mechanical properties, e.g. density, heat conductivity, strength and hardness are depending on the sintering process. In order to characterize mechanical properties of sintered materials, in this contribution we present a microscale modelling approach. This approach consists of three different stages: simulation of the sintering process, transition to final structure and modelling of mechanical behaviour of sintered material with discrete element method (DEM). To validate the proposed simulation approach and to investigate products with varied internal structures alumina powder has been experimentally sintered at different temperatures. The comparison has shown that simulation results are in a very good agreement with experimental data and that the novel strategy can be effectively used for modelling of sintering process.