Tensile property and fracture mechanism of B₄C-Al neutron absorber material

To get the mechanical properties of B₄C-Al plate made by powder metallurgy, B₄C-Al plate was tested by static tension, fracture appearance was investigated by scanning electron microscope (SEM), and the mechanism of fracture was discussed. The results show that at room temperature the yield strength, the tensile strength and elongation of the composite with 30% B₄C are 200 MPa, 250 MPa and 2.5%, respectively. When the temperature of tensile test is elevated, the tensile strength and the yield strength of composites decrease and approach to one value, and the elongation increases and reaches maximum value. Fracture behaves in macro-scope as brittle fracture and is caused by the appearance and accumulation of hole in matrix and the separation of reinforced particles and matrix. (authors)