Microstructure evolution process of porous silicon carbide ceramics prepared through coat-mix method

Porous silicon carbide ceramics were prepared through the coat-mix method and molding, carbonization and sintering process with silicon powders and phenolic resin as raw materials. The crystalline phase, microstructure, and porosity of samples treated at different stages were characterized. Results showed that the fabricated porous silicon carbide ceramics consist of pure β-SiC phase with a homogeneous structure and porosity of above 60%. Each of the processing stages, including coat-mix, molding, carbonization, and sintering, has certain contribution to the porosity of the final porous silicon carbide ceramics, in which the mole ratio of resin carbon to silicon and the molding temperature are the main factors to affect the porosity. A porosity evolution process of porous silicon carbide ceramics during fabrication process was also proposed.