Mechanical properties and densification of short carbon fiber-reinforced TiB sub(2)/C composites produced by hot pressing

Short carbon fiber reinforced titanium diboride-carbon (TiB sub(2)/C/C sub(sf)) composites were prepared by hot pressing. The effect of carbon fiber content on mechanical properties and densification of composites was studied. The results show that short carbon fibers can be uniformly distributed in TiB sub(2)/C matrix, with carbon fiber addition, the relative density and mechanical properties of composites are increased. The flexural strength and relative density of composites with 3 wt% C sub(sf) reach the peak value (116 MPa, 95.84%), and composites with 4wt% C sub(sf) have the best fracture toughness of 3.61 MPa m super(1/2), which improved by 40% than composites without carbon fibers. Fiber fracture and pull-out are main toughening mechanisms of TiB sub(2)/C/C sub(sf) composites.