Mechanical and Tribological Properties of Alumina Toughened Zirconia Composites through Conventional Sintering and Microwave Sintering

The present study investigates the relative density, mechanical and tribological properties of 3 mol% yttria-stabilized zirconia composites reinforced with 10 vol% of alumna through both conventional sintering and microwave sintering (CS and MW). The variations in mechanical and tribological properties were correlated to the corresponding microstructures. Wear tests were carried out on the composite samples against EN30 grade stainless steel disk with 320-grade emery paper for a sliding distance of 1500 m under dry sliding condition. Wear rate and coefficient of friction of the developed composite were evaluated with varying normal loads in the range of 20–200 N with corresponding sliding velocities of 0.79 m/s, 1.4 m/s, 1.8 m/s and 2.4 m/s, respectively. The maximum value of wear rate and COF of the MW samples were 51.21% and 24.59%, respectively, which were lower compared to that of CS.