Compressive Strength

Compressive strength or the capacity of the material to resist compressive loading applied across both major surfaces of a plate for example, is one of the key strengths of an advanced ceramic. The application of a load spread evenly over these surfaces is one of the key measures used to gauge its capability to resist compaction. The exact opposite test criteria is tensile strength where the material is tested by being pulled apart, with forces applied to surfaces 180 degrees opposed to each other.

The structure of the material, the process of compaction and even machining / diamond grinding also has an effect on the strength of the material.

Reduce the flaw size and the number of flaws and the material strength will improve, a better engineered material with smaller grain sizes performs much better than a material with large grains in this test, and improved surface finish can also be a benefit.

Materials Ranked by Compressive Strength

CeramAlloy™ Ultra Hard’s compressive strength performance characteristics match up to Silicon Carbide, Silicon Nitride and Alumina 99.5%. However, with overall superior Density and Hardness characteristics, CeramAlloy Ultra Hard is a great choice where mechanical properties are paramount.

Silicon Nitride (Si3N4) – CeramaSil-N™

3,000 MPa
Silicon Nitride has the most versatile combination of mechanical, thermal, and electrical properties of any advanced ceramic material.
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Silicon Carbide (SiC) – CeramaSil-C™

3,000 MPa
Silicon Carbide (SiC) is one of the lightest, hardest, and strongest advanced ceramic materials with exceptional thermal conductivity, acid resistance, and low thermal expansion.
Details

Alumina (Al2O3) – CeramAlox™

3,000 MPa
Alumina, also known as Aluminum Oxide, is a hard wearing advanced advanced ceramic material frequently used in a wide variety of industrial applications.
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Alumina (Al2O3) – CeramAlox™ Ultra Pure

2,500 MPa
CeramaAlox Ultra Pure is a very high purity (99.95%) grade of Alumina (Aluminum Oxide) exhibiting an exceptional combination of mechanical and electrical properties.
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Aluminum Nitride (AlN) – CeramAlum™

2,000 MPa
Aluminum Nitride (AlN) is an excellent material to use if high thermal conductivity and electrical insulation properties are required; making it an ideal material for use in thermal management and electrical applications.
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Ceramic Material Comparison Chart

Related Properties

Fracture Toughness

The ability to resist fracture is a mechanical property of materials known as fracture toughness. For advanced ceramics it uses a critical stress intensity factor known as KIC where the fracture normally occurs at the crack terminations.

Density

Density is the mass of a material per unit volume. The unit of measurement can be expressed in different ways and is referred us as g/cm3 but another measurement value is kg/m3.

Hardness

One of the most valuable characteristics of advanced ceramics in high-performance applications is their extreme hardness. Hard ceramic materials are used for a wide range of applications in diverse fields and applications such as cutting tools for milling and grinding.

Compressive Strength