Reactive Flash Sintering of BiFeO₃–BaTiO₃ Ceramics

Rapid preparation of dense BiFeO₃–BaTiO₃ lead-free piezoelectric ceramics at low temperatures is beneficial to preventing the Bi volatilization, reducing the energy consumption and developing novel materials with some unique properties. In this paper, dense BiFeO₃–BaTiO₃ ceramics with good ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties were prepared in an electric field of 200 V/cm with a current limit of 280 mA via reactive flash sintering of multiphase precursor powders (i.e., Bi₂O₃, Fe2O₃, TiO2 and BaCO₃) at 415 ℃ for 30 s. The solid-state reaction in sintering occurs during the flash event. The current limit has an effect on the phase transformation and densification. It is indicated that the reactive flash sintering technology could prepare the single-phase and dense ceramic material through flash sintering of starting precursors in one step, thus providing an effective approach for the rapid production of ceramic materials.