Surface properties of nanozirconia and their effect on its rheological behaviour and sinterability

Water leaching procedure was successfully applied for modification of surface properties and improvement of sinterability of commercial nano-ZrO2. It has been shown that the process effectively removes some ionic impurities thus influencing the compositional, electrokinetic and acidic/basic properties of nanozirconia surface. The process purifies the surface and improves the deflocculation susceptibility of nano-ZrO2 if d-fructose is used as a dispersant. The studies revealed that by using a purified powder, it is feasible to obtain green and sintered samples of satisfactory densification and microstructural features. SEM micrographs of polished sintered bodies have provided some evidences that homogeneous and fully densified microstructure of the samples can be obtained by using water-leached nanozirconia powders.