Dynamic fatigue and strength characterization of three ceramic materials

Fracture strength and fatigue parameters of three ceramic materials submitted to dynamic fatigue were evaluated. A machinable leucite-reinforced dental ceramic, aluminum oxide, and yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) were tested. The inert strength of the materials was determined in air (25 degrees C) at stressing rates of 70, 250, 400 MPa/s for Porcelain, Alumina and YSZ respectively. The data was analyzed using a two-parameter Weibull distribution. The Weibull modulus (m) and the characteristic of fracture (sigma0) parameters were determined for each material. Specimens were also tested in 3-point bending at different stressing rates in distilled/deionized water at 37 degrees C (dynamic fatigue) in order to calculate the fatigue parameters n and ln B. The strength for each material was characterized using Strength-Probability-Time (SPT) diagrams for 1 day, 1 year and 10 years. YSZ showed a high-fracture strength sigma0 (1,459 MPa) at a failure probability of 63.2% and high resistance to subcritical crack growth. YSZ and alumina showed better resistance to slow crack growth than porcelain, indicating less susceptibility to strength degradation by stress corrosion. Lifetime predictions after 10 years indicate a reduction of 50%, 36% and 29% in strength for porcelain, alumina and YSZ respectively. YSZ seems to be a very promising material for long-term dental and biomedical applications.