Grain growth and sinterability in Er2O3-doped cubic zirconia (c-ZrO2)

Abstract

Abstract The effects of the addition of Er2O3 on the grain growth and sinterability of c-ZrO2 were investigated using 8 mol.% yttria-stabilized cubic zirconia (c-ZrO2) and various amounts of Er2O3. For these purposes, the content of 0–15 wt.% Er2O3 and c-ZrO2 powders were doped using a colloidal process. Undoped and Er2O3-doped c-ZrO2 specimens were annealed for grain growth at different temperatures and holding times. An increase in annealing temperature and holding time caused grain growth in all specimens. Activation energy of the undoped c-ZrO2 obtained was 358 kJ mol−1 and the activation energies of 1, 5, 10 and 15 wt.% Er2O3-doped specimens obtained were 388, 403, 432 and 476 kJ mol−1, respectively. While excessive grain coarsening in the undoped c-ZrO2 was observed, a lesser level of grain growth occurred in the Er2O3-doped specimens, due to the segregation of Er2O3 at the grain boundaries and the restriction in the grain boundaries mobility of c-ZrO2.