Microstructural Development during the Sintering of Sepiolite

The sintering behavior of sepiolite containing ceramic materials may have interesting characteristics due to their microporous and fibrous microstructure retained at temperatures as high as 1000°C. Sepiolite containing minerals from Eskisehir-Sivrihisar region of Turkey were processed to investigate their densification behavior and microstructural evolution during the sintering. Microporosity development and morphological transformation upon sintering at a wide temperature range up to 1200°C were followed and characterized using SEM and TEM techniques. The porosity values of 50-55 % were found to be retained and low linear shrinkage values of 9-11% were measured at temperatures as high as 1050-1100°C.