Abstract
Nano-sized yttria (Y2O3) dispersed copper (Cu) powders were prepared at a low temperature of 400 °C by a PVA solution route. Gel precursors consisting of metal cations and a PVA polymer were heated in an Ar-4%H2 atmosphere. The PVA was burned out below 300 °C and the fully crystallized Cu powder exhibited a porous morphology and fine particles with a size of 10-15 nm with uniformly dispersed nano-sized Y2O3. The development of a crystalline phase and the final powder morphology were strongly dependent on the PVA content. The synthesized powder that did not employ PVA had severely agglomerated, larger particles that were not uniform in size. This paper introduces a PVA solution technique for fabricating nano-sized oxide ceramic dispersed metal powders. We also studied the effects of PVA content and heating temperature on the powder properties. Characterization of the synthesized powders was conducted using XRD, SEM, TEM, and EDS. †(Received December 26, 2012)
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