Influence of microstructure on the thermophysical properties of sintered SiC ceramics

The specific heat, thermal diffusivity and thermal conductivity of porous SiC ceramics sintered using two kinds of SiC powders (fine and coarse) have been investigated for sintering temperatures in the range 1700–2000 °C. Sintered SiC has a porous structure with approximately 30–40 vol.% porosity. Thermal diffusivity was measured by the laser flash method. The thermal diffusivities and thermal conductivities of sintered SiC ceramics increased with increasing sintering temperature. The specific heat decreased slightly with increasing sintering temperature. The thermal diffusivities and thermal conductivities of SiC sintered from coarse powder were higher than those of SiC sintered from fine powder. The thermal conductivity of samples increased markedly with increasing grain size.