Effect of the Different High Volume Fraction of SiC Particles on the Junction of Bismuthate Glass-SiCp/Al Composite

The in-house developed bismuthate glass and the SiCp/Al composites with different volume fractions of SiC particles (namely,60 vol.%, 65 vol.%, 70 vol.%, and 75 vol.%) were jointed by vacuum hot-pressing process. The novel material can be used for thespace mirror. The SiCp is an abbreviation for SiC particle. Firstly, the SiCp/Al composites with different vol.% of SiC particle weremanufactured by using infiltration process. In order to obtain a stable bonding interface, the preoxide layers were fabricated onthe surfaces of these composites for reacting with the bismuthate glass. The coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) was carriedout for characterizing the difference between the composites and bismuthate glass. The sealing quality of the composites and thebismuthate glass was quantified by using shear strength testing. The optical microstructures showed the particles were uniformlydistributed in the Al matrix. The SEM image shows that a smooth oxidation layer was generated on the SiCp/Al composite. TheCTE testing result indicated that the higher the vol.% of the particles in the composite, the lower the CTE value. The shear strengthtesting result disclosed that SiCp/Al composite with relatively low CTE value was favorable to obtain a bonding interface with highstrength.