Zirconia/alumina functionally graded material made by ceramic ink jet printing

A thin, zirconia–alumina, one-dimensional, functionally graded material (FGM) has been prepared by direct ink jet printing using a drop-on-demand jet printer and an ink mixing protocol. The step height was comparable to the particle diameters. The gradient profile was thus continuous and energy dispersive X-ray analysis of the composition established a sound correlation between the predicted theoretical profile and the actual gradient printed. The preparation of well dispersed inks resulted in a fine distribution of grains throughout the microstructure.