Preparation of high-strength ZrO2 ceramics by binder jetting additive manufacturing and liquid glass infiltration

Abstract

Binder jetting (BJ) additive manufacturing of zirconia (ZrO2) ceramics presently encounters the challenges of achieving high relative density, dimensional precision, and superior mechanical properties of the prepared ceramics. This study extensively investigates the impacts of BJ processing parameters—namely, binder saturation, layer thickness, roller speed, and printing layout—on the dimensional accuracy, density, and mechanical strength of the resulting green parts. The identification of optimal BJ processing parameters is pivotal in the fabrication of ZrO2 ceramic green bodies with superior dimensional precision and mechanical strength. The study shows that while solid-phase sintering alone can result in a relative density of 50.99%–54.27 % for BJ-processed ZrO2 ceramics, glass infiltration after sintering substantially elevates the relative density and flexural strength. Specifically, infiltration at an optimal temperature of 800 °C increases the relative density of the sintered ceramic to 94.49 % and flexural strength to 76.48 ± 3.25 MPa, which represent a significant improvement of 40.22 % in density and a 35-fold increase in strength of the sintered ZrO2 ceramics, respectively. These findings underscore the potential of BJ printing and subsequent glass infiltration as a synergistic approach to achieve high-performance ZrO2 ceramics through additive manufacturing.