Swelling and time-dependent crack growth in SiC/SiC composites

SiC continuous-fiber composites are considered for nuclear applications but concern has centered on the differential materials response of the fiber, fiber/matrix interphase (fiber coating), and matrix. In our study, a continuous-fiber composite is simulated by four concentric cylinders to explore the magnitude of radial stresses when irradiation swelling of the various components is incorporated. The outputs of this model were input into a time-dependent crack-bridging model to predict crack growth rates in an environment where thermal and irradiation creep of SiC-based fibers is considered. Under assumed Coulomb friction the fiber–matrix sliding stress decreases with increasing dose and then increases once the pyrocarbon swelling reaches ‘turn around’. This causes an initial increase in crack growth rate and higher stresses in crack bridging fibers at higher doses. An assumed irradiation creep law for fine-grained SiC fibers is shown to dominate the radiation response.