Thermal behavior, crystal structure and electrical conductivity of {(ZrO2)0.92(Y2O3)0.08}1-x(Cr2O3)x (x = 0, 0.05, 0.10, 0.15) solid solution

Abstract {(ZrO2)0.92(Y2O3)0.08}1-x(Cr2O3)x solid solution is composed by co-precipitation method and the effects of Cr2O3 content on thermal analysis, crystal structure, microstructure and electrical conductivity are researched. The results discuss the potential for application as a diffusion barrier material at temperatures between 600 and 850 °C to the limiting current oxygen sensors. TG and DSC results show that the main weight loss and heat absorption processes occur below 600 °C and the {(ZrO2)0.92(Y2O3)0.08}1-x(Cr2O3)x solid solution is obtained above 600 °C. XRD analysis shows that the solid solution is fluorite type cubic phase and the solubility of Cr2O3 in (ZrO2)0.92(Y2O3)0.08 is less than 0.10. The SEM-EDS results show that the grain size of the sintered body decreases with increasing Cr2O3 content and distribution of each element is uniform. The conductivity of solid solution decreases first and then increases as Cr2O3 doping content, reaches the maximum value of 4.33 × 10−3 S cm−1 at 850 °C. The doping of Cr2O3 is beneficial to improve the conductivity of the solid solution at low temperature.