The previous report examined electrical conductivity (EC) data from RT to 800°C for several forms of two-dimensional silicon carbide composite made with a chemical vapor infiltration (CVI) matrix (2D-SiC/CVI-SiC), an important quantity needed for the design of an FCI. We found that both in-plane and transverse EC-values for 2D-SiC/CVI-SiC strongly depended on the total thickness of the highly conductive pyrocarbon (PyC) fiber coating and the alignment of the carbon coating network. Furthermore, the transverse EC depended on the degree of interconnectivity of this network. For our EC-modeling efforts we used either “nominal” coating thickness values provided by the composite fabricator or we made thickness estimates based on a limited number of fiber cross-section examinations using SEM. Because of the importance of using a truly representative coating thickness value in our analysis, we examined numerous new SEM cross-sectional views to reassess the reliability of our limited number of original coating thickness measurements as well as to obtain an estimate of the variation in thickness values for different composite configurations.
Revised: August 24, 2011 |
Published: March 23, 2011
Citation
Youngblood G.E. 2011.CHARACTERIZATION BY SEM OF THE PYROCARBON FIBER COATING IN 2D-SIC/CVI-SIC. In Fusion Reactor Materials Program Semiannual Progress Report for Period Ending December 31, 2010, edited by FW Wiffen, R Godfrey and B Waddell. 31-37. Oak Ridge, Tennessee:Oak Ridge National Laboratory.PNNL-SA-77924.