Role of impurities on the spark plasma sintering of ZrCx–ZrB2 composites

Fabrice Goutier (1) , Gilles Trolliard (2) , Stéphane Valette (1) , Alexandre Maitre (3) , C. Estournes (4)

1 Axe 2 : procédés de traitements de surface
2 Axe 3 : organisation structurale multiéchelle des matériaux
3 Axe 1 : procédés céramiques
4 CIRIMAT - Centre interuniversitaire de recherche et d'ingenierie des matériaux

The study of the spark plasma sintering (SPS) of ZrCx and ZrCx–ZrB2 composites was carried out considering the effect of experimental parameters such as the applied load, the temperature and the heating time. In addition, the role of the main impurities, detected in the raw materials, on the sintering behaviour has been explored by Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). The analyses of monoliths and composites showed up the liquid phase formation from silica impurities and the complete structural reorganisation of free carbon into the graphite form during the sintering treatment. It is also shown that within composites, the plastic strain is preferentially accommodated by ZrB2 crystals.

Mots clés: Spark plasma sintering; ZrC; ZrB2; Composites; Electron microscopy; Carbon

Mots clés: Electron microscopy; Spark plasma sintering; ZrC; ZrB2; Composites; Carbon

Domaines: Matériaux

Fabrice Goutier, Gilles Trolliard, Stéphane Valette, Alexandre Maitre, C. Estournes. Role of impurities on the spark plasma sintering of ZrCx–ZrB2 composites. Journal of the European Ceramic Society, 2008, 28 (3), pp.671-678. ⟨10.1016/j.jeurceramsoc.2007.07.013⟩. ⟨hal-00263439⟩