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Abstract Spark plasma sintering (SPS) is one of the methods used to achieve the low-temperature densification of refractory metal materials. In this study, powder prepared through a wet chemical method was consolidated via SPS at 1100 °C, 1200 °C, 1350 °C, 1600 °C, and 1800 °C to obtain a high-performance W-TiC-Y 2 O 3 composite material. Densification was studied by analyzing the densification curve and changes in the microstructure of the samples. This process could be divided into three stages: the bonding stage, the sintering neck growth stage, and the shrinkage and spherification stage of closed pores. Surface diffusion and grain boundary diffusion played different roles in densification. The density, grain size, and Vickers hardness of the tungsten material increased significantly as temperature increased. This study evaluated the sintering process and provided a basis for obtaining high-performance tungsten materials through SPS. Highlights • Surface diffusion and grain boundary diffusion played different roles in densification. • The density, grain size, and Vickers hardness of tungsten increased as temperature increased. • The densification of the composite accelerated at the initial stage of sintering but decelerated after a certain period. • The densification of the powder at different sintering stages was influenced by different mechanisms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel pressure-assisted transient viscous phase sintering process has been used to fabricate dense BN-ZrO 2 -SiC composites at relatively low sintering temperatures. The sintering behavior and densification mechanism of BN-ZrO 2 -SiC composites incorporated with B 2 O 3 as transient viscous phase have been investigated. A rapid densification process occurs at about 1300 °C, which is attributed to the in-situ formation of SiO 2 by chemical reactions among ZrO 2 , SiC and B 2 O 3 . BN-ZrO 2 -SiC composites sintered at 1300 °C under 100 MPa exhibit a relative density of 95.9%, a flexural strength of 242 MPa and a fracture toughness of 4.1 MPa m 1/2 . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

β – SiC powder mixed with 10 wt.% Al 2 O 3 and Y 2 O 3 powder in a molar ratio of 2: 3 was consolidated by spark plasma sintering (SPS) at 1700–1900 °C. Three SPS routes were designed to contrast the effects of passing a strong direct current (DC) on the densification behavior of the SiC materials. The wetting of the Y – Al – Si – O liquid to the SiC particles was increased by the DC, hence better densification. The resultant SiC ceramic had a finer uniform microstructure and high flexural strength. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effects of a single additive (SnO 2 , Ta 2 O 5 , or WO 3 ) on the crystal structure, densification, and electrical conductivity of the GdSmZr 2 O 7 ceramic have been examined. The GdSmZr 2 O 7 ceramic with or without a single additive of 1 wt.% SnO 2 , Ta 2 O 5 , or WO 3 sintered at temperatures between 1773 and 1973 K exhibits a single cubic pyrochlore-type phase. The relative densities of different compositions increase with increasing sintering temperature. The total conductivity of different samples obeys the Arrhenius relation. The total conductivity of the GdSmZr 2 O 7 ceramic is not improved by the addition of 1 wt.% SnO 2 , Ta 2 O 5 , or WO 3 . A single additive, SnO 2 , Ta 2 O 5 , or WO 3 , is not an effective sintering aid for the GdSmZr 2 O 7 ceramic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two-step pressureless sintering was investigated for TiB 2 –40wt%TiN system. The calculation for phase equilibria was performed, which indicates that a significant nitrogen loss can occur at 1700 °C while ZrO 2 readily dissolves into TiN lattice from 1600 °C. The XRD analysis revealed that nitrogen loss was greater during first step at low temperature but smaller for second step at high temperature. As a result, the high-temperature processing of the second step provided better densification and mechanical properties than those of one-step sintering. • TThermodynamic calculation for phase equilibria was done to understand the nitrogen behavior as a function of temperature. • Considering a significant nitrogen loss during high temperature processing, two-step sintering was studied to improve the densification and mechanical properties of TiB 2 –40wt%TiN. • Two-step sintered TiB 2 -TiN composites would be an idea to improve the densification and toughening of boride-nitride ceramic composites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]