Study on high temperature sintering processes of selective laser sintered Al2O3/ZrO2/TiC ceramics

High temperature sintering processes of selective laser sintered Al2O3/ZrO2/TiC ceramics were studied. The effects of the sintering temperature and the sintering time on the relative density, strength and fracture toughness of Al2O3/ZrO2/TiC ceramics were investigated. The results showed that the sintering temperature and sintering time had a great effect on the relative density and the mechanical properties of Al2O3/ZrO2/TiC ceramics. The mechanical strength increased from 120MPa to 360MPa and KIC increased from 3.7 J/m2 to 6.9 J/m2 when the sintering temperature increased from 1400oC to 1600oC, however, the mechanical strength decreased rapidly from 370MPa to 330MPa and KIC decreased from 6.9 J/m2 to 6.1 J/m2 when the sintering time increased from 30min to 90min. Furthermore, the addition of TiC and ZrO2 in the Al2O3 matrix significantly improved mechanical strength and fracture toughness of the Al2O3 matrix ceramics.