The effect of Al2O3-MgO additives on the microstructure of spark plasma sintered silicon nitride

It was shown that spark plasma sintered silicon nitride with a high content of Al2O3 and MgO consists of α and β silicon nitride, the main phase being α silicon nitride. The increase in the sintering temperature did not lead to significant changes in the phase composition as occurs in silicon nitride added with Al2O3-Y2O3. It was found that increasing in SPS temperature above 1650 °C leads to an insignificant increase in the density. A complex shaped equiaxed grain microstructure was shown in both cases. However, doping with aluminum and yttrium oxides allows obtaining an elongated grain microstructure. The Hall-Petch effect was observed for the microhardness of the investigated SPSed silicon nitride. The microhardness of the described ceramics was rather high and more than 1900 HV compared to the pressureless sintered at 1800 °C silicon nitride with the microhardness equal to 1511 HV.