Compressibility and sinterability of CeO2–8YSZ powders synthesized by a wet chemical method

The compressibility and sinterability of CeO₂–8YSZ powders prepared by co-precipitation were investigated in detail. It was shown that the compressibility curves are characterized by three linear parts at low, middle and high pressures. The middle and high regions of the applied pressure, as least investigated, were studied in detail. The specific values of the compaction pressure (P_Y2) and density (ρ_Y2) at the intersection point of the compressibility curves were determined for all investigated powders. It was shown that the compressibility curves for all investigated powders can be described by two straight lines by using special coordinates ρ_G/ρ_Y2 and log(P/P_Y2).The sinterability curves of powders after drying and after calcination at 350 °C have a pronounced maximum. The optimum compaction pressures (P*) corresponding to the pressure at the maximal value of sintered density were determined for all investigated powders. It was shown that the region of optimal pressures is in the upper part of the middle-pressure region, whereas the P*/P_Y2 ratio varies between 0.7 and 0.9. The influence of the powder fractionation on the sinterability of the powders was also studied in detail as a function of the compaction pressure and calcination temperature.