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Fused silica ceramics were fabricated by gelcasting, by use of a low-toxicity N′ N-dimethylacrylamide gel system, and had excellent properties compared with those obtained by use of the low-toxicity 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate and toxic acrylamide systems. The effect of sintering temperature on the microstructure, mechanical and dielectric properties, and thermal shock resistance of the fused silica ceramics was investigated. The results showed that sintering temperature has a critical effect. Use of an appropriate sintering temperature will promote densification and improve the strength, thermal shock resistance, and dielectric properties of fused silica ceramics. However, excessively high sintering temperature will greatly facilitate crystallization of amorphous silica and result in more cristobalite in the sample, which will cause deterioration of these properties. Fused silica ceramics sintered at 1275°C have the maximum flexural strength, as high as 81.32 MPa, but, simultaneously, a high coefficient of linear expansion (2.56 × 10/K at 800°C) and dramatically reduced residual flexural strength after thermal shock (600°C). Fused silica ceramics sintered at 1250°C have excellent properties, relatively high and similar flexural strength before (67.43 MPa) and after thermal shock (65.45 MPa), a dielectric constant of 3.34, and the lowest dielectric loss of 1.20 × 10 (at 1 MHz). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A low-toxicity and water-soluble monomer N, N-dimethylacrylamide (DMAA) was used as gelling agent in gelcasting of silica ceramics. In order to prepare high solid loading and low viscosity gelcasting slurries, effects of various parameters such as zeta potential, pH value, dispersant dosage and solid loading on rheological behaviors of the suspensions were investigated. The results suggest that the best conditions are pH 7.7 and dispersant dosage 0.1wt%. The maximum flexural strength of green bodies with only 2wt% organics in the slurry could be up to 15.3MPa. The sintering shrinkage, bulk density, coefficient of linear expansion and flexural strength of sintered ceramics are 5.2%, 1.95g/cm3, 0.58×10−6 k−1 (200°C) and 67.4MPa, respectively. The dielectric constant and loss (1MHz) are 3.26 and 7.8×10−4, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A non-aqueous gel casting process based on the mixed solvent (ethanol and polyethylene glycol) and low-toxicity N,N-dimethylacrylamide (DMAA) was developed for an aluminum nitride (AlN) ceramic. In the present work, rheological properties of non-aqueous concentrated AlN suspensions were investigated in the presence of mixed solvent, dispersant, milling time, monomer and solid loading, in order to screen for the most suitable experimental conditions to obtain a good rheological behavior for gel casting. The results showed that the 50 vol% slurry with 0.2 wt% dispersant concentration, 2 h milling time, 6 wt% -monomer content, and a solvent ratio of 3:1, can meet the requirements for the casting process of AlN ceramic slurries. After being dried at 100 °C for 1 h, the optimum bulk density and maximum flexural strength of the AlN green bodies were as high as 1.97 g/cm 3 and 18.68 MPa, respectively. SEM photographs revealed that the green body had a relative uniform microstructure when the solid loading was 50 vol%. The shrinkage and deformation of shaped sintered bodies prepared through gel casting were small after sintering. The sintering shrinkage, apparent porosity, bulk density and flexural strength were 14.8%, 0.22%, 3.21 g/cm 3 and 310 MPa, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]