A Material-by-Design Approach to Develop Ceramic- and Metallic-Particle-Reinforced Ca-α-SiAlON Composites for Improved Thermal and Structural Properties.

α-SiAlON is commonly used to machine superalloys owing to its desirable thermal and structural properties. α-SiAlON is among the crystalline forms of SiAlON and has more favorable properties than β-SiAlON. However, it becomes fragile during the machining of hard-to-cut materials due to its low fracture toughness and machinability.