Effect of ZrO_2 Dopant on the Sintering Behavior and Performance of MCMB-derived Carbon Laminations

Liquid ball-milling dispersant method was used to prepare the ZrO2-doped carbon laminations from mesocarbon microbeads（MCMBs）. After sintering at 1 300 ℃ in nitrogen atmosphere, the effect of ZrO2 concentration on sintering behavior, electric conductivity as well as bending strength of the carbon laminations was investigated in detail. The results showed that the volumetric shrinkage rate of the carbon laminations decreased from 38.2% to 30.9% when the ZrO2 concentration in raw materials varied from 0 to 16 wt%. Compared with undoped carbon lamination, the samples had high-electric conductivity and excellent bending strength in all cases. The electric conductivity achieved the maximum value of 225 S/cm, and the bending strength of the carbon lamination was 119.24 MPa for a concentration of 8 wt% ZrO2 in raw materials. In addition, the electric conductivity and bending strength reducing were observed when the ZrO2 concentration was higher than 8 wt%. The catalytic effect on graphitization for the carbon laminations was the most effective when the ZrO2 concentration was set at 8 wt% in raw materials.