Experimental Assessment of Plasticity of Nanocrystalline 1.7 mol% Yttria Tetragonal Zirconia Polycrystals

High temperature mechanical behavior of nanocrystalline 1.7 mol% (3 wt%) yttria tetragonal zirconia polycrystals (nc‐YTZP) was characterized by compression creep tests. The hot isostatically pressed nc‐YTZP with mean grain size of 120 nm was subjected to grain growth to obtain grain sizes in the range of 120–310 nm. Direct measurements of the creep parameters were performed in the temperature range 1150°–1300°C and stress range 5–400 MPa. The strain rates at 1150°C ranged between 2 × 10−7 and 9 × 10−5 s−1 when increasing the stress from 15 to 400 MPa. Values of the stress exponent, n=2.0±0.3, and the activation energy, Q=630±40 kJ/mol, were obtained for all test conditions. A value of the grain size exponent, p=1.5±0.3, was obtained at 1150°C in the stress range studied. Detailed microstructural observations revealed the absence of glassy phase at the grain boundaries. The creep parameters were compared with those from the literature, and the results were discussed in terms of the model recently developed by the authors, with a reasonable agreement.