Influence of preparation method and alumina content on crystallization and morphology of porous yttria stabilized zirconia

Influence of addition of alumina and preparation methods (sol-gel synthesis and mechanochemical preparation) on crystallization and morphology of yttria stabilised zirconia was examined. Presence of alumina was found to delay crystallization of zirconia, the effect being more pronounced at higher alumina content. The two oxides form easily distinguished separate phases. Milling lowers the crystallization temperatures of the sol-gel derived powders since nuclei are formed during the milling and smaller particle size allows easier removal of residual organic components. The milling results in crystallization of some monoclinic zirconia, both in sol-gel derived powders and in case of mechanochemical processing. There are no significant differences between the preparation methods in pore size and relative density of sintered tablets: powders obtained by mechanochemical processing and milled sol-gel derived powders both give tablets with homogeneous morphology. The advantage of sol-gel process is preparation of pure tetragonal zirconia phase without traces of monoclinic phase. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.