In situ growth of elongated Al 2O 3 grains induced by Al nanoparticles

Abstract

We have reported the in situ growth of elongated grains induced by Al nanoparticles for the fabrication of high-pure and high toughness Al 2O 3 ceramics. It is found that the introduced Al nanoparticles have a profound effect on the anisotropic growth of Al 2O 3 grains. As compared to the conventional techniques by adding impurities to induce the anisotropic grain growth, Al particles could be transformed into Al 2O 3 after sintering in air, leading to the formation of high-pure Al 2O 3 ceramics without contamination. The elongated grains induced by the Al nanoparticles make noticeable improvements of bending strength and fracture toughness of Al 2O 3 ceramics. Current work might benefit the fabrication of high-pure and high toughness Al 2O 3 ceramics with in situ grown elongated grains.