Growth behavior of aluminum borate whiskers on zirconia toughened alumina (ZTA) particle surface

In this work, B₄C-covered zirconia-toughened alumina (ZTA) particles are prepared and oxidised at 1050 °C for different times (0, 2, 4, and 8 h) in air. The X-ray diffraction and electron probe micro-analysis results show that the covering layer is mainly composed of oxide B₂O₃ intermetallics, residual B₄C particles, and Al₁₈B₄O₃₃ whiskers. The scanning electron microscopy results show that the growth of Al₁₈B₄O₃₃ whiskers on the ZTA particles enhances with increasing heat preservation time; the optimum holding time is determined to be 8 h Al₂O₃ in the ZTA particles diffuse into the covering layer and combine with B₂O₃ to form Al₁₈B₄O₃₃ whiskers; the Al₁₈B₄O₃₃ whiskers grow via the liquid-solid mechanism.