Particle-stabilized ultra-low density zirconia toughened alumina foams

Zirconia toughened alumina (ZTA) is one of the leading engineering ceramics; it is used in a wide range of components and products in applications for which high strength, high toughness, and high temperature stability are needed. The particle-stabilized direct foaming method has lately become a subject of particular interest. Nevertheless only a few studies on combining ZTA ceramics and particle-stabilized direct foaming have been reported. Therefore, in this study, ultra-low density ZTA foams having single strut wall thickness, cell size ranging from 80 μm to 200 μm, and above 90% porosity were successfully fabricated via the particle-stabilized direct foaming method. Valeric acid was used as particle surface modifier to render the particles partially hydrophobic, which stabilized the air/water interface of the ZTA foams. The sintered foams maintained compressive strength up to 8 MPa with porosity of 90%.     

Effects of foam composition on the microstructure and piezoelectric properties of macroporous PZT ceramics from ultrastable particle-stabilized foams

Porous lead zirconate titanate (PZT) ceramics could be produced by combining the particle-stabilized foams and the gelcasting technique. In this study, the foaming capacity of particle-stabilized wet foams was tailored by changing the concentration of valeric acid and pH values of suspension. Accordingly, porous PZT ceramics with different porosity, microstructure, dielectric and piezoelectric properties were prepared with the respective wet foam. Increase in the porosity led to a reduction in the relative permittivity (ε_r), a moderate decline in the longitudinal piezoelectric strain coefficient (d₃₃) and a rapid decline in the transverse piezoelectric strain coefficient (d₃₁), which endowed porous PZT ceramics with a high value of hydrostatic strain coefficient (d_h) and hydrostatic figure of merit (HFOM). As a result, the prepared samples possessed a maximal HFOM value of 19,520×10^?15 Pa^?1 with the porosity of 76.3%. The acoustic impedance (Z) of specimens had the lowest value of 1.35 Mrayl, which could match well with those of water or biological tissue; accordingly, the material would be beneficial in underwater sonar detectors or medical ultrasonic imaging.     

Effect of surface finishing and thickness on the translucency of zirconia dental ceramics

The effects of different surface finishing procedures on the translucency of yttria stabilized zirconia ceramics (ZrO₂) were evaluated. ZrO₂-3mol.%Y₂O₃ (designed Zr3) or ZrO₂-5mol.%Y₂O₃(Zr5) specimens with thickness varying between 0.5 and 1.5 mm were obtained by sintering at 1500 °C for 2 h. Surface finishing of the sintered specimens was done in three distinct manners: polishing with diamond pastes, blasting with Al₂O₃ particles and blasting with Al₂O₃–SiO₂ particles, according to the preparation protocol for dental prostheses. These sample groups were characterized by X-Ray diffraction analysis, scanning electron microscopy, surface roughness and spectrophotometry. The sintered ceramics exhibited relative densities higher than 99% and were composed of 68.5% and 31.5%of tetragonal (t)-ZrO₂ and cubic(c)-ZrO₂ for composition Zr3 and 25.2% and 74.8% for composition Zr5, respectively. Furthermore, 1.5 to 1.8% of monoclinic (m)-ZrO₂, has been found in the blasted surfaces. The average grain size varied from 0.5 μm for Zr3 to 1.45 μm for the Zr5 samples. After polishing, all samples presented a surface roughness R_aof about 0.05 μm, while blasting resulted in an increased roughness ranging between 1.24 μm and 1.49 μm.Samples rich in (c)-ZrO₂ phase (Zr5) are more translucent than samples rich in (t)-ZrO₂ (Zr3) because of their larger grain size and because the cubic phase is less anisotropic than (t)-ZrO₂. Furthermore, the translucency of thinner samples is more affected by abrasive blasting because they also present the highly anisotropic monoclinic(m)-ZrO₂ phase and, therefore, the reduction of translucency is more pronounced. Parameters such as grain size, crystalline phase composition, porosity and grain boundary density are used to explain the phenomena involved in the differences of translucency of these materials.     

Effect of humidity on the thermal conductivity of porous zirconia ceramics

This study focuses on the role of the water content on the effective thermal conductivity of porous ceramics placed in different conditions of relative humidity. Fully stabilized zirconia samples with variation in the capacity to take up water were prepared by varying the temperature of the thermal treatment. The pore volume fraction of the dried samples decreases from 56% down to 30%. Thermal conductivity measurements were made on samples placed in a chamber where the relative humidity was fixed between 3% and 99%. For all samples, the experimental values of the effective thermal conductivity increase significantly with the water content. Experimental results agree closely to analytical predictions based on the upper limit of the Hashin and Shtrikman expressions for calculating the thermal conductivity of the pores (constituted by air and water) and Landauer's effective medium expression for calculating the effective thermal conductivity of the material.     

The effects of dry and wet grinding on the strength of dental zirconia

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of different dry and wet surface finishing on the mechanical strength and surface characters of a dental yttria-stablized zirconia ceramic (Y-TZP). Surface grinding treatments with a dental air turbine handpiece were performed with: coarse diamond (DC) and fine diamond (DF), tungsten carbide (Tc) and fine tungsten carbide (TcF) burs with or without water coolant. Air particle abrasion with 50?µm alumina (APA), combination of burs treatments or burs-abrasion, i.e. DC-TcF and DC-APA, were also performed with non-treatment group as control (C). Statistical analyses (α?=?0.05) on results revealed that all surface treatments significantly increased the surface roughness (Ra) than control (p?<?0.05), whilst decreased breaking force (BFN) and biaxial flexural strength (BFS). Tungsten carbide surface treatment could significantly lower (p?<?0.05) BFS and BFN, but DC only significantly lowered BFN. DC and tungsten carbide treatments exhibited significantly lower BFS values in wet than dry. A positive correlation was found between the BFS and BFN with the number of fragments. Only tetragonal phase of ZrO2 was presented by XRD. Synchrotron XRD revealed the (101) peak exhibits a broadening effect in the tungsten carbide treated specimens (38?nm for Tc and 30?nm for TcF), i.e. grain sizes in these specimens were smaller than the control (60?nm for C). This study outcome suggested that tungsten carbide burs should be avoided for grinding Y-TZP because of significant reduction in the BFS. Water cooling during grinding did not consistently reduce the potential heat damaging effects expected with dry grinding.     

添加剂对锆质定径水口烧结性能和抗热震性的影响

采用粉末成型工艺,以粒度为0.045mm的斜锆石粉和粒度均为0.154mm和0.074mm的MgO部分稳定电熔氧化锆和CaO部分稳定电熔氧化锆为原料,分别加入不同添加剂Y2O3、CeO2和Y2O3 CeO2,在300MPa的压力下成型,并于1720℃烧后制成锆质定径水口试样。结果表明通过合理控制颗粒级配和优化工艺参数,当添加剂中Y2O3和CeO2的含量(w)分别为0.6%和0.4%时,氧化锆的稳定率约为70%,同时可得到显气孔率低,体积密度高,抗热震次数≥5次的锆质定径水口。     

Effect of airborne-particle abrasion of yttria-containing zirconia dental ceramics on mechanical properties before and after regeneration firing

The zirconia-resin adhesion, crucial in fixed dental prostheses, may be mechanically enhanced by airborne-particle abrasion (APA) induced surface roughening. APA may substantially increase the strength of 3Y-TZP, which is associated with (sub)surface compressive residual stresses through t-m phase transformation. In this work, the effects of APA and regeneration firing (RF) (1000 °C, 15 min) of various zirconia dental ceramics containing 3–5 mol.% of yttria were investigated. The phase composition, (sub)surface microstructural changes, and biaxial flexural strengths coupled with Weibull statistics and fractography were analysed and compared. The results show a significant increase in strength for 3Y and 4Y specimens after APA, ascribed to the t-m transformation toughening. However, APA substantially decreased the strength of 5Y variant. After RF, the ferroelastic domain switching phenomenon was presumably the persisting mechanism to withstand the propagation of APA-induced cracks in 3Y and 4Y zirconias, not being inferior to strength values of the as-sintered counterparts.     

Evaluation of the effect of high-speed sintering on the mechanical and crystallographic properties of dental zirconia sintered bodies

There are only a few reports investigating the effects of high-speed sintering on the properties of dental zirconia. In this study, we investigated the effects of high-speed sintering on the crystal phase, mechanical properties, microstructure, and LTD resistance of 3 mol. % and 4 mol. % Y₂O₃ stabilized zirconia (3Y and 4Y zirconia). In both 3Y and 4Y zirconia, yttria distribution in the zirconia sintered body was suppressed and the LTD resistance was improved by high-speed sintering. High-speed sintering slightly reduced the mechanical properties of 3Y and 4Y zirconia, but they showed clinically sufficient mechanical properties. From the above results, it was concluded that high-speed sintered 3Y and 4Y zirconia are sufficiently clinically acceptable.     

Effect of sintering regimes and thickness on optical properties of zirconia ceramics for dental applications

In dentistry, monolithic zirconia restorations have been preferred over all-ceramic restorations in recent years. Translucency is an aesthetic demand in dental restorations, and it can be identified with translucency parameter (TP). Zirconia thickness, Y₂O₃ content, and sintering conditions are important parameters that influence the translucency of the restorations. It is crucial to investigate monolithic zirconia ceramics under different sintering regimes and reveal the critical parameters for dental restorations. The aim of this study was to determine the optical and microstructural behaviors of monolithic zirconia ceramics containing different amounts of yttria depending on various sintering regimes and thicknesses. Therefore, a conventional zirconia CopranZri (CZI) and two monolithic zirconia materials, CopraSupreme (CSP), CopraSmile (CSM) were used. Slow, normal, speed, and translucency sintering regimes with thicknesses of 0.7, 1.0, 1.3 mm were selected. TP of the specimens was calculated, and statistical analyses were performed by using one-way ANOVA and Tukey-Kramer post hoc tests. Characterization of the specimens was performed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) techniques. The results showed that the effect of different sintering programs is more critical for CSP and CSM in terms of translucency variations and translucency program led to the most grain growth.     

硫化温度对硅橡胶发泡硫化动力学及性能的影响

采用动力学方程自催化模型Sestak-Berggren以及Arrhenius方程研究了模压过程中交联以及发泡的活化能,并结合扫描电镜(SEM)照片研究了不同硫化温度条件下发泡试样的力学性能及静压缩条件下的载荷保持率。实验结果表明,硫化过程的活化能大于发泡过程,即温度对硫化过程的影响程度较为明显。硫化温度对发泡材料的泡孔结构有很大的影响,温度越高,发泡倍率越大,其泡孔也越加均匀紧密。静态压缩条件下,硫化温度越高,试样内部的载荷保持率下降速度越快,强度也越低。     

ZrO2 对堇青石多孔陶瓷性能和显微结构的影响

以高岭土、滑石和αAl2O3微粉为主要原料,按堇青石的理论组成配料后,外加10%的化学纯活性炭为造孔剂,同时分别外加0、0.25%、0.5%、0.75%和1.0%的分析纯ZrO2,经湿混、干燥、造粒、成型和1340℃保温5h烧成后,制成不同ZrO2含量的堇青石多孔陶瓷,并研究了ZrO2外加量对试样热膨胀系数、显气孔率、吸水率及烧成收缩率的影响,并用XRD和SEM分析了试样的物相组成和断面形貌。结果表明:与未加ZrO2的相比,外加0.25%ZrO2时,试样的热膨胀系数显著降低,但超过0.25%时,热膨胀系数随ZrO2外加量的增加而略有升高;随ZrO2外加量的增加,试样的显气孔率和吸水率逐渐增大,而烧成收缩率降低;与未加ZrO2的试样相比,外加1.0%ZrO的试样内扁平状气孔的数量较多,且气孔在试样内分布较均匀。     

Effect of foam density,oil viscosity,and temperature on oil sorption behavior of polyurethane

This paper examines the effect of foam density, oil viscosity, and temperature on the oil sorption behavior of polyurethane foams. Four polyurethane foams with different densities and two oil types with different viscosities were investigated. The amount of oil uptake was measured gravimetrically. Oil transport through the foams was analyzed by nondestructive X‐ray microtomography. Oil sorption capacity increased significantly with the decrease in foam density, due to the increase in the number of open cells. The oil sorption capacity depended only slightly on sorption temperature and oil viscosity. X‐ray visualization allowed pore filling behavior to be observed directly, and further scope to extend the technique is revealed. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 99: 360–367, 2006     

Effect of CuO and TiO2 on the sintering temperature and dielectric properties of BaWO4 for LTCC applications

A series of (1-x) BaWO₄-xCuO low-temperature sintered composite ceramics were prepared via co-firing the mixture of BaWO₄ and CuO in the first part of this study. The sintering temperature of BaWO₄ was decreased from 1150 °C to 950 °C when a little amount of CuO was used as sintering aids. The 0.95BaWO₄-0.05CuO sample heated at 950 °C for 4 h had good dielectric performance (Q × f ~ 31,847 GHz, ε_r ~ 7.99, τ_f ~ −81.7 ppm/°C). However, the negative τ_f was too large to apply to practice. To solve this problem, the rutile phase TiO₂ nano-particle with a large positive temperature coefficient of +450 ppm/°C was added as τ_f compensator in the second part of the study. TiO₂ powders not merely improved the temperature stability, but promoted the grain growth. However, the ε_r value increased from 10.5 to 12.6 and Q×f value decreased slightly as TiO₂ content increased from 0.30 to 0.45. The 0.65 (0.95BaWO₄-0.05CuO) −0.35TiO₂ composite ceramic displayed an optimum performance (Q × f ~ 22,012 GHz, ε_r ~ 11.21, τ_f ~ −2.9 ppm/°C). Such a sample was chemically compatible with silver, implying that it can be implemented on LTCC applications.     

The effect of wet foam stability on the microstructure and strength of porous ceramics

Wet foam stability is of prime importance in fabricating porous ceramics with the desired microstructure and mechanical properties. In this research, wet foams were fabricated via direct foaming after separately adding an anionic surfactant (TLS) and a cationic surfactant (DTAC) into alumina slurries with a copolymer of isobutylene and maleic anhydride (PIBM) as both the dispersant and the gelling agent. The foam stability was evaluated by a stability analyzer. The bubble size rapidly increased in the wet foam with TLS as the foam stabilizer and many large bubbles appeared within 60 min. The wet foam containing DTAC was very stable. Cationic DTAC increased the hydrophobicity of alumina particles by interacting with the anionic PIBM adsorbed on the particles. The hydrophobically modified particles acted as the foam stabilizer and enhanced the wet foam stability. Furthermore, the fast gelling speed of the slurry containing DTAC also enhanced the wet foam stability. The average cell size of the ceramic with 82.9% porosity from the wet foam with TLS was 188 µm and the compressive strength was 9.7 MPa. The counterparts from the wet foam with DTAC were 54 µm of average cell size and 18.1 MPa of compressive strength. The superior stability of wet foam brought about a smaller cell size and higher strength of the resultant ceramic.     

Effect of stereocomplex crystal on foaming behavior and sintering of poly(lactic acid) bead foams

Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) bead foams with stereocomplex (Sc)/α crystals were prepared by melt mixing and solid‐state foaming methods, independently. A systematic method was applied to evaluate the effect of Sc/α crystals on rheological properties and foaming behavior of PLA. The results indicated that the presence of Sc/α crystals affected the foaming behavior and the melt elasticity of PLA. Hence, the enhanced rheological properties of PLA had a significant effect on controlling the foaming behavior. As a result, PLA bead foam with an expansion ratio of 24‐fold was developed. And, the presence of Sc/α crystals could also facilitate the sintering behavior and broaden the sintering process window. Sintered PLA bead foam with finer cellular morphology and strong sintering effect was obtained by inducing an appropriate Sc/α crystalline structure. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry     

Effect of sintering temperature on microstructure and mechanical properties of zirconia-toughened alumina machinable dental ceramics

This study investigated the effect of sintering temperature on the microstructure and mechanical properties of dental zirconia-toughened alumina (ZTA) machinable ceramics. Six groups of gelcast ZTA ceramic samples sintered at temperatures between 1100 °C and 1450 °C were prepared. The microstructure was investigated by mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) techniques. The mechanical properties were characterized by flexural strength, fracture toughness, Vickers hardness, and machinability. Overall, with increasing temperature, the relative density, flexural strength, fracture toughness, and Vickers hardness values increased and more tetragonal ZrO₂ transformed into monoclinic ZrO₂; on the other hand, the porosity and pore size decreased. Significantly lower brittleness indexes were observed in groups sintered below 1300 °C, and the lowest values were observed at 1200 °C. The highest flexural strength and fracture toughness of ceramics reached 348.27 MPa and 5.23 MPa m^1/2 when sintered at 1450 °C, respectively. By considering the various properties of gelcast ZTA that varied with the sintering temperature, the optimal temperature for excellent machinability was determined to be approximately 1200–1250 °C, and in this range, a low brittleness index and moderate strength of 0.74–1.19 µm^−1/2 and 46.89–120.15 MPa, respectively, were realized.     

Toughening effect of multi-walled boron nitride nanotubes and their influence on the sintering behaviour of 3Y-TZP zirconia ceramics

Different amounts (0.5, 1, 2.5 and 5 wt%) of hollow “cylindrical” and “bamboo-like” boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs) have been used to reinforce 3Y-TZP zirconia ceramics via spark plasma sintering. No significant influence of different morphologies of BNNTs on the mechanical properties at the macro-scale (elastic modulus, hardness, and fracture toughness) has been observed. The fracture toughness increased continuously with the increasing amount of the BN nanotubes up to 2.5%, resulted in the improvement of ∼100% compared to the reference ZrO₂. A direct influence of BNNTs on the toughening of ZrO₂ has been recognized. The BNNTs strengthen the zirconia grain boundaries resulting in the alteration in fracture mode from inter- to trans-granular. The BNNTs also promoted the transformation toughening of zirconia. Their influence on the bridging and pull out has been confirmed by the investigation of the composites with the amorphous borosilicate matrix.     

Effect of carboxymethyl cellulose addition on the properties of Si3N4 ceramic foams

The effect of carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) addition on the preparation of Si₃N₄ ceramic foam by the direct foaming method was investigated. The addition of CMC in the foam slurry can reduce the surface tension, increase the viscoelasticity of foams, and improve their stability and fluidity. The foam ceramics show low shrinkage during drying owing to the CMC and the gelation of acrylamide monomers. The surface structure of dried foam is uniform, and there are no macropores and cracks on the surface. The sintered Si₃N₄ foam ceramics have very uniform pore distribution with average pore size of about 16 μm; the flexure strength is as high as 3.8–77.2 MPa, and the porosity is about 60.6–82.1%.     

Effect of zirconia content on the mechanosynthesis and structural features of fluorapatite-based composite nanopowders

The influence of zirconia content on the mechanosynthesis of fluorapatite–zirconia composite nanopowders was investigated. The structural features of the specimens with different amounts of monoclinic zirconia (0–20 wt%) were examined after 5 h of mechanical activation. Results indicated that the formation of fluorapatite–zirconia composite was strongly influenced by the zirconia content. In the presence of 5–10 wt% monoclinic zirconia, fluorapatite–zirconia composite nanopowders were produced after 5 h of milling. With increasing zirconia content to 20 wt%, there was no trace of fluorapatite–zirconia composite. In the absence of zirconia, the average crystallite size, lattice strain and the volume fraction of grain boundary of fluorapatite were about 34 nm, 0.469% and 8.38%, respectively. These values reached 24 nm, 0.754% and 11.71% with the addition of 10 wt% monoclinic zirconia. In the presence of 10 wt% monoclinic zirconia, the fraction of crystalline phase considerably decreased after 5 h of milling. Results revealed that the lattice parameter deviations were affected by the zirconia content. Based on SEM observations, no significant differences in the size distribution and morphology of the agglomerates were observed.     

Effect of sintering temperature on the structural and magnetic properties of MgFe2O4 ceramics prepared by spark plasma sintering

Spark plasma sintering (SPS) is a powerful technique to produce fine grain dense ferrite at low temperature. This work was undertaken to study the effect of sintering temperature on the densification, microstructures and magnetic properties of magnesium ferrite (MgFe₂O₄). MgFe₂O₄ nanoparticles were synthesized via sol–gel self-combustion method. The powders were pressed into pellets which were sintered by spark plasma sintering at 700–900 °C for 5 min under 40 MPa. A densification of 95% of the theoretical density of Mg ferrite was achieved in the spark plasma sintered (SPSed) ceramics. The density, grain size and saturation magnetization of SPSed ceramics were found to increase with an increase in sintering temperature. Infrared (IR) spectra exhibit two important vibration bands of tetrahedral and octahedral metal-oxygen sites. The investigations of microstructures and magnetic properties reveal that the unique sintering mechanism in the SPS process is responsible for the enhancement of magnetic properties of SPSed compacts.