Heat-Shock Resistance

the ability of refractory and other brittle materials to withstand thermal loads caused by changes in temperature upon heating or cooling. Heat-shock resistance depends on the material’s coefficients of thermal expansion and thermal conduction, elasticity, and other properties and on the shape and size of the article; formulas for calculating the coefficients and criteria of heat-shock resistance are based on these relations. In practice, heat-shock resistance is usually determined by the number of thermal cyclings (heating and cooling cycles) that a sample can withstand before cracks appear or before the sample is partially or totally destroyed. It can also be determined by the temperature gradient that causes cracking.