Fabrication and Mechanical Properties of Textured Ti<sub>3</sub>SiC<sub>2</sub> by Slip Casting in a Strong Magnetic Field Followed by Spark Plasma Sintering

Ti3SiC2 with a nacre-like microstructure was fabricated by slip casting in a strong magnetic field followed by spark plasma sintering (SPS). To determine the effect of the grain size and texture on the mechanical properties, two textured and non-textured Ti3SiC2 ceramics with different grain sizes were prepared with the different initial particle size and SPS sintering temperature. A powder with relatively large plate-like Ti3SiC2 particles was fabricated by the templated-grain growth method. Increasing the grain size increased the fracture toughness of the textured Ti3SiC2 ceramics but decreased the three-point bending strength. The three-point bending strength and fracture toughness of the textured Ti3SiC2 with the large grain size were 812 MPa and 7.3 MPa・m1/2, and those with the small grain size were 1045 MPa and 5.6 MPa・m1/2, respectively. Furthermore, catastrophic failure of the textured Ti3SiC2 ceramics after the fracture toughness test was prevented, similarly to in fiber-reinforced ceramics.