About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
MS&T25: Materials Science & Technology
|
| Symposium
|
Sintering and Related Powder Processing Science and Technologies
|
| Presentation Title |
M-6: Influence of Precursor Chemistry and Calcination Temperatures on the Phase Purity and Microstructure of Gadolinium Zirconate |
| Author(s) |
Rushikesh Prakash Magdum, William G. Fahrenholtz, Gregory E. Hilmas, David W. Lipke |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Rushikesh Prakash Magdum |
| Abstract Scope |
Gadolinium zirconate (Gd₂Zr₂O₇) is a promising thermal barrier coating material due to its higher-temperature phase stability and lower thermal conductivity compared to commercially used yttria-stabilized zirconia. In this study, Gd₂Zr₂O₇ nanopowders were synthesized via co-precipitation, calcined, and densified by spark plasma sintering. X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectroscopy were employed to analyze phase composition and microstructure. When using ZrOCl2 as the zirconium-bearing reactant, a GdOCl impurity phase was generally observed unless calcination and sintering were conducted above its thermal decomposition range. Efforts to minimize or eliminate the occurrence of this impurity phase, by modification of the precipitation conditions and use of nitrate-based reactants, were systematically investigated and their effects on sintered microstructures were quantitatively assessed. Nanopowder synthesis parameters are found to dramatically affect sintered microstructures. |