The Feasibility of Acoustic Emission as a Proof Test Method for Silicon Carbide Tubes

The feasibility of using acoustic emission as a nondestructive method for proof testing silicon carbide tubes was investigated. Silicon carbide maintains its structural integrity at very high temperatures making it a very beneficial material for certain applications. However, this material has inherent flaws in its microstructure and is very brittle. Therefore, the prospect of determining in a nondestructive manner which tubes are excessively flawed is very attractive.

Various specimen sizes and shapes were tested under different loading conditions for this research. The following conclusions were made based on these experiments and a comprehensive literature search. Additional research and development work to establish an acoustic emission based proof test for silicon carbide tubes is not recommended. Acoustic emission can identify the development or growth of a new crack, but does not necessarily detect the presence of an existing one. However, acoustic emission monitoring of SiC can be a valuable tool in understanding the response of the material to applied stress.