A novel method for the preparation of porous zirconia ceramics with multimodal pore size distribution

This work presents a new route of processing porous ceramic materials by vacuum induction melting of metallic ternary alloys from the system Ni–Zr–Y. Following internal oxidation results in an interpenetrating network of nickel and oxide phase consisting of yttria and zirconia. After dissolution of the metallic nickel matrix the oxide phase remains as a stable porous ceramic material with a multimodal pore size distribution. The porosity, pore size distribution and specific surface area can be controlled by alloy composition, solidification conditions and oxidation parameters.