| Summary: | The Metals and Ceramics Research Branch (MCRB) of the Weapons and Materials Research Directorate is providing ceramic material characterization and evaluation to the Tank Automotive Research, Development, and Engineering Center (TARDEC) as a part of a project entitled "Fighting Vehicle Propulsion Technology Using Ceramic Materials." Through research and exploratory development of advanced ceramics and other technologies, the objective of this project is to improve the mobility of future Army fighting vehicles. The purpose is to demonstrate the capabilities of ceramics, other advanced materials, tribology, and combustion technologies to contribute to a higher power density and lower fuel consumption diesel engine. Four commercial silicon nitrides were purchased and characterized for potential application as piston crowns, valves, and valve seats. A sodium-zirconium-phosphate (NZP) family of materials was examined for exhaust port applications, and several thermal barrier coating (TBC) materials were examined as possible additions to metallic piston crowns, rings, and cylinder liners. This report contains the results of this preliminary characterization and evaluation.
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