The effects of the addition of Tetragonal-ZrO2 on the mechanical properties of MgAl2O4 – ZrO2 composites

Abstract The effects of the addition of tetragonal 3mol% Y2O3 – ZrO2 into a MgAl2O4 spinel matrix were investigated. MgAl2O4 spinel's lacking mechanical properties prevent further utilization in many structural and refractory applications even though it has excellent chemical and thermal stability. The addition of tetragonal-ZrO2 was observed to improve the hardness, fracture toughness and biaxial flexural strength of MgAl2O4 materials. Moreover, the additions of 3mol% Y2O3 – ZrO2 resulted in a reduction of the mean grain size.