Effect of nickel oxide and titanium oxide on the microstructural, optical, and mechanical properties of calcium hexaaluminate ceramics

Abstract The high porosity and poor mechanical properties limit the application of calcium hexaaluminate (CA6) ceramics in the field of colored ceramics. In order to synthesize a new blue ceramic material, Ni2+ and Ti4+ were introduced into CA6 as an effective system to replace cobalt-aluminum spinel. Blue ceramic material with low porosity and good mechanical properties was successfully prepared by doping nickel oxide and titanium oxide into CA6 using a high-temperature solid-phase method. The results show that the sintering, densification, mechanical and optical properties of the ceramic material are affected by the amount of NiO and TiO2 doping. The color for the sample is related to the energy change produced by the substitution of Ni2+ and Ti4+ for Al3+, producing yellow light absorption and blue light reflection in the visible range. Due to its good mechanical and color properties, it can be used as a new type of environmentally friendly ceramic with great industrial potential for a wide range of high-tech applications such as mobile phone backplanes.