Mechanical properties of yttria-stabilized zirconia ceramics

Superplasticity is a well-known characteristic of Y2O 3-stabilized tetragonal zirconia (3Y-TZP) ceramic composites at elevated temperatures. The present investigation was originated to evaluate the potential of producing zirconia ceramics suitable for achieving superplasticity.;High purity 3 mol% Y2O3-stabilized tetragonal zirconia (3Y-TZP) ceramic composites containing 20 wt% alumina were successfully consolidated by application of Cold Isostatic Pressing (CIP) followed by a subsequent sintering process. Constant-stress tensile creep experiments at elevated temperatures were conducted in order to examine plastic deformation behavior of the material. In addition to mechanical testing data, the microstructure observations confirmed superplastic properties of the ceramic composite.;It is also known that in order to attain High Strain Rate Superplasticity (HSRS) in zirconia ceramics, it is essential to retain a stable fine-grained microstructure at high temperatures. Experiments have confirmed that adding a second soft phase such as spinel can facilitate to reach high strain-rate superplasticity in zirconia ceramics by suppressing grain growth during sintering process and enhancing cation diffusion.;In the present investigation, homogenous 3Y-TZP ceramic composite powders containing 30 vol% MgAl2O4 spinel were successfully prepared through both physical-based and chemical-based methods. An electric current-activated method known as Spark Plasma Sintering (SPS) was employed for powder consolidation process. This is a very rapid electric current-activated sintering technique having a heating rate of 300 K/min. The powder preparation and consolidation steps were carried out over a wide range of conditions to ensure a homogenous nanocomposite. The experiments showed that fully-dense zirconia ceramics with an average initial grain size of the order of ∼100 nm can be sintered at the relatively low processing temperature of 1373 K in 10 min.;In order to study the superplastic behavior of the nanocomposite, creep tensile tests were performed in a temperature range of 1623--1723 K under different stress levels. Deformation mechanisms were investigated by detailed microstructure observations and quantitative evaluation of crystallite orientations using scanning electron microscopy and synchrotron radiation techniques.