Improved mechanical properties of AgTiB2 contact materials reinforced by the TiB2 loaded with ZnO nanorods

[Display omitted] •TiB2 powders loaded with ZnO nanorods are successfully synthesized.•ZnO is beneficial for inhibiting the aggregation of TiB2 reinforcements.•The incorporation of ZnO promotes the densification of AgTiB2 contact material.•ZnO nanoparticles enhance the mechanical properties of AgTiB2 contact material. The TiB2 loaded with nano-sized ZnO rods were synthesized by sol-gel method, and the Ag-4wt.%TiB2-xwt.%ZnO (x = 0, 0.25, 0.5) contact materials were fabricated by spark plasma sintering (SPS). The results revealed that the ZnO nanorods with the dimensions of about Φ130 × 400 nm were uniformly loaded on the surface of TiB2 particles. The incorporation of ZnO can inhibit the aggregation of TiB2 reinforcements and promote the densification of AgTiB2 composites. As compared to Ag-4wt.%TiB2, the Ag-4wt.%TiB2-0.25wt.%ZnO contact material presents a larger increase on the yield strength and ultimate compressive strength, which is increased by 247.93% and 111.58%, respectively. It suggests that an appropriate ZnO content is more beneficial for the improvement on the mechanical properties of AgTiB2 contact materials.