Abstract
The effects of CeO2 addition on the structure, microstructure and fracture toughness of yttria stabilized zirconia toughened alumina (ZTA) ceramics were investigated. The CeO2 addition to the powder mixtures was varied from 0wt.% to 15wt.%. The powders of each composition were pressed into pellets and sintered at 1600°C for 4h under pressureless conditions. The fracture toughness of the sintered samples was determined by the Vickers indentation technique with a 30kgf load. Based on the XRD analysis, only corundum and yttria doped zirconia phases were present. Shift in position of the zirconia peaks were observed due to the CeO2 addition. Microstructure investigations showed that the grain sizes of both corundum and yttria doped zirconia increased with increasing CeO2 addition. Fracture toughness and hardness values were dependent on the CeO2 addition. The highest fracture toughness (8.38MPa.√m) and hardness (1688HV) was obtained with the sample with 5wt.% CeO2 additions. ZTA prepared with CeO2 additives showed an increase of 30% in fracture toughness compared to ZTA without additives.
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