Processing of Al2O3/Y-TZP laminates from water-based cast tapes

Laminated structures have been investigated due to their capability for the reinforcement of ceramics. Crack deflexion and bifurcation, surface strengthening and threshold strength are the mechanisms associated to the fracture of laminated ceramic. In all the cases, a precise control of the thickness and composition of the layers is necessary. In this sense, colloidal processing techniques have proved their adequacy for the fabrication of designed layered structures. This paper deals with the fabrication of layered ceramics by stacking water-based cast tapes at room temperature and using low pressures. In order to control the pressing procedure, the engineering strain–stress curves recorded during the stacking of the tapes were analyzed. Afterwards, the sintering conditions have been optimized by adjusting the green density of the tapes to avoid differential sintering and the associated cracks. Monolithic and layered materials free of cracks have been fabricated using optimized processing conditions.