Investigations on porous silicon nitride ceramics prepared by the gel-casting method

Haiqing Li; Yanru Wang; Runze Liu; Shuming Wang

doi:10.1515/ijmr-2023-0008

Article

Investigations on porous silicon nitride ceramics prepared by the gel-casting method

Haiqing Li , Yanru Wang , Runze Liu and Shuming Wang

Published/Copyright: May 17, 2024

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From the journal International Journal of Materials Research Volume 115 Issue 6

Abstract

Due to their special structure and many excellent properties, porous Si₃N₄ ceramics have a wide range of potential applications as a new structural and functional integrated material. In the present study, porous Si₃N₄ ceramics with excellent bending properties and satisfactory porosity were prepared by the gel-casting method. The variations in porosity, bending strength, fracture morphology and phase composition of the porous Si₃N₄ ceramics with different weight fractions of La₂O₃–MgO sintering additive were investigated. The results showed that the density of porous Si₃N₄ ceramics increased linearly with the increase of sintering additive content. When the content of sintering additive increased from 2.5 wt.% to 10 wt.%, the porosity of porous ceramics decreased from 30 % to 10 %. With the increase of sintering additive content, the bending strength of the samples first increased and then decreased. When the sintering additive content was 5.0 wt.%, the average bending strength of the samples reached a maximum of 240.88 MPa, and scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffractometry results showed that β-Si₃N₄ particles with well-developed pores and a maximum aspect ratio of 5.8 were formed in the porous silicon nitride ceramics. This study provides a reference for the preparation of porous Si₃N₄ ceramics with good bending properties and porosity.

Keywords: Silicon nitride; Porous ceramic; Gel-casting; Sintering additives; Atmospheric pressure sintering

Corresponding author: Shuming Wang, School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing, P.R. China, E-mail: wangshuming@ustb.edu.cn

Research ethics: Not application.
Author contributions: The authors have accepted responsibility for the entire content of this manuscript and approved its submission.
Competing interests: The authors state no conflict of interest.
Research funding: None declared.
Data availability: Not application.

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Received: 2023-01-09

Accepted: 2024-01-08

Published Online: 2024-05-17

Published in Print: 2024-06-25

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Articles in the same Issue

https://doi.org/10.1515/ijmr-2023-0008

Keywords for this article

Silicon nitride; Porous ceramic; Gel-casting; Sintering additives; Atmospheric pressure sintering