High-strength joining of Si 3 N 4 ceramics has been achieved by developing a process that effectively eliminates the seam, and may allow for fabrication of large or complex silicon nitride bodies. This approach to joining is based on the concept that when sintering aids are effective in bonding individual grains, they could be equally effective in joining bulk pieces of Si 3 N 4 . Optimization of the process led to Si 3 N 4 /Si 3 N 4 joints with room-temperature bend strengths as high as 950 MPa, corresponding to more than 90% of the bulk strength of the Si 3 N 4 . At elevated temperatures of 1000°and 1200°C joint strengths of 666 and 330 MPa, respectively, were obtained, which are the highest values reported to date for these temperatures. These bend strengths are also more that 90% of the strength of bulk Si 3 N 4 measured at these temperatures.
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