Effects of SiO2 and 3Y-TZP on Mechanical Properties of Zircon

Zircon, having excellent thermal, chemical, and mechanical properties, is utilized in refractory materials, electronic materials, chemical machines, structural materials, etc. However, zircon generally shows thermal dissociation to zirconia($ZrO_2$) and silica($SiO_2$) around the sintering temperature of $1540^{\circ}C$, and when zircon particles are small and impurities are present, thermal dissociation is known to occur at around $1100^{\circ}C$. This reduces the mechanical properties of $ZrSiO_4$. In this research, the effect of adding $SiO_2$ and 3Y-TZP to $ZrSiO_4$ has been studied in order to suppress dissociation and improve the mechanical properties. Addition of $SiO_2$ suppressed the dissociation of $ZrSiO_4$ at lower temperatures. It also enabled optimum packing between the particles, resulting in a dense microstructure and good mechanical properties. When 3Y-TZP was added, recombination with the dissociated $SiO_2$ resulted in good mechanical properties by suppressing the generation of pores and the densification of the microstructure.

SiO2와 3Y-TZP 첨가가 지르콘의 기계적 물성에 미치는 영향