Differential sintering in ceramic injection moulding: particle orientation effects

The sintering shrinkage in three orthogonal directions was measured in sections cut from large rectangular injection moulded ceramic blocks. Two powders were used: a comminuted alumina and a chemically-derived zirconia. Pronounced anisotropy of shrinkage was observed in the former whereas the equiaxed zirconia showed uniform shrinkage throughout the moulding. The pattern of shrinkage anisotropy was consistent with that observed by other investigators and indicates that slight particle anisotropy can introduce differential sintering. The sintering shrinkage in the alumina powder was found to be most pronounced perpendicular to the main flow direction.