Structural, Morphological and Electrical Properties of ZTA-La2O3 Composite Ceramic

The influence of La2O3 addition (x = 1,3,5 and 7 wt.%) on phases formation, microstructural and electrical properties of ZTA ceramic prepared via conventional solid-state method was studied by using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Hall Effect measurement, respectively. The XRD peaks show the presence of three different phases (Al2O3, Zr0.82Y0.18O1.91 and La0.85Al11.6O18.678). In addition, the bulk density of the present samples decreased remarkably while the porosity increases. The SEM results show that the grain morphology varies significantly with increasing La2O3 content. Increasing amount of La2O3 has increased the grain size which is beneficial to improve the electrical properties of ZTA system. The electrical resistivity of the ZTA-La2O3 composites ceramic decreased with increasing initial La2O3 content. The lowest electrical resistivity 13.2 (O. cm) was obtained for ZTA-7wt.% La2O3 composites ceramic. Therefore, the results confirm that better physical and electrical properties can be obtained by controlling amount of La2O3 addition into ZTA.