Rapid synthesis of AlON powders by low temperature solid-state reaction

Abstract

High synthesis temperatures and long soaking times are generally required to fabricate AlON powders, which can cause coarsening and aggregation of the powder. Solid-state reaction methods form AlON powders by a direct reaction of Al2O3 and AlN, enabling rapid synthesis of AlON powder at low temperatures. In this work, single phase AlON powders were fabricated by a solid-state reaction method using Al2O3 and AlN powders as raw materials. To lower the synthesis temperature and shorten the soaking time, the raw materials particle sizes and the homogeneity of the Al2O3/AlN mixture were investigated. The effects of AlN content, synthesis temperature, and soaking time on the synthesis of AlON powders were examined. When the AlN content was 27 mol%, single phase AlON powders were synthesized by calcining Al2O3/AlN mixture at 1680 °C for 20 min. After ball-milling at 250 rpm for 24 h, the synthesized AlON powder was ground into a single phase fine AlON powder with an average particle diameter of 320 nm, a narrow size distribution, and good dispersibility. Transparent AlON ceramics with dimensions of Φ100 mm × 1 mm were fabricated by pressureless sintering the produced fine AlON powder.