Synthesis of zirconia sphere particles based on gelation of sodium alginate

Zirconia sphere particles were synthesized through the gelation process of Na-alginate, and cermet (ZrO2–Mo) pellets were fabricated under several conditions. In this process, a zirconia slurry was prepared by mixing oxide powders (ZrO2, Y2O3, Er2O3, CeO2), distilled water and Na-alginate, and subsequently dropped into CaCl2 solution. As a result, zirconia sphere particles coated with a gelled film were synthesized. The slurry density (zirconia content in slurry) of 30–64 wt.% and Na-alginate concentration of a few% were good for gelation for up to 10 wt.% CaCl2 solution. Sphere particles with smaller diameter were obtained by dropping slurry with a mechanical vibration. The prolongation of the ball milling time for mixture of oxide powders was effective to increase the sintered density of zirconia sphere particles, especially for higher CeO2 concentration. The dense cermet pellets were fabricated for max. 50% volume ratio of zirconia phase for Mo matrix using zirconia particles covered with Mo powder by a rotating granulation method.