Physicochemical Properties of Hydrothermal Nanocrystalline ZrO2-Y2O3-CeO2 Powders

Nanocrystalline powders in the ZrO2-Y2O3-CeO2 system were produced by hydrothermal synthesis in an alkaline environment. The powder properties were studied by differential thermal analysis, Xray diffraction, electron microscopy, petrography, and BET. A low-temperature ZrO2-based cubic solid solution crystallized in the powders in hydrothermal conditions. The specific surface area of the powders was 81-110 m(2)/g. The lattice parameters of the ZrO2-based solid solution increased monotonically with higher CeO2 amount. The research results are needed for the microstructural design of composites in the ZrO2-Y2O3-CeO2 system with high resistance to low-temperature ageing.